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Application No.: 10/01119/B Applicant: Total Media Ltd Proposal: Conversion of existing offices to twelve permanent apartments Site Address: Units 231-242 Second Floor Offices Viking Aparthotel St Pauls Square Ramsey Isle Of Man IM8 1LE ### Considerations Case Officer : Mrs Jade Craig Photo Taken: 19.08.2010 Expected Decision Level: Planning Committee Written Representations ### Consultations Consultee : Manx Electricity Authority Notes: Comments received Consultee : Mr P S Harrison Notes: no objection. Consultee : Highways Division Notes: Approve Consultee : Clerk To The Commissioners \& RTC Drainage Notes : Consultee : Department Of Social Care - Housing Notes: Affordable housing memo sent 10.08.10. PT 10.08.10 - Comments received
This application is required to be assessed by the Planning Committee, as the proposal would create more than 8 residential units.
The application site comprises the curtilage of the eastern and southern wings of the former Viking Aparthotel in Ramsey. The former Viking Aparthotel is a large building comprising retail use, residential accommodation, tourist accommodation and offices. The building is three storeys tall, with eastern, southern and western sections. The part of the site which is subject to this proposal is specifically the second floor of the eastern section.
Proposed is the conversion of the existing offices on the second floor of the eastern wing to twelve permanent residential apartments. The flats concerned are numbers 231 to 242 inclusive and they are shown as numbers 1 to 12 on the drawing submitted with this application. A previous planning application (PA 01/01562/B) changed the use of the 12 flats from residential to offices, so this current application would result in a reversal of that.
The 12 units would be studio apartments with separate kitchens and shower rooms. The flats would be accessed from stairwells to the east and south, leading to the second floor corridor which runs down the eastern side of the block, with windows on the eastern side. Within the flats, the shower rooms and kitchens would be internal rooms, but the main living space would have windows on the western elevation looking out over St. Paul's Square. The largest flat (no. 242) would also have two windows to the living space on the north elevation.
The flats are considered to be small in size. Each flat covers a floor area of 30 square metres, which is the minimum size required under the Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982. Flat no. 242 (or no. 12 on the drawing) would be larger than the others at 40 square metres, as it occupies the northern corner site and does not have to give up space for the corridor.
The following previous planning applications are considered relevant in the assessment and determination of this application;
01/01562/B - Permitted on Review 21.02.02 Change of use of second floor apartments to office accommodation. (This approval relates to apartments 231 to 242 inclusive, which are now subject to this current application).
07/01626/C - Permitted 26.10.07 Change of use from tourist accommodation to permanent studio apartments. (This approval relates to apartments 110 and 111 on the first floor of the eastern section of the building).
08/01908/C - Permitted 20.01.09 Change of use from tourist to residential. (This approval relates to apartments 243 to 253 on the second floor of the southern section of the building).
08/02230/C - Permitted 02.02.09 Change of use from tourist to residential. (This approval relates to apartments 103 to 105, 107 to 109 and 112 on the first floor of the eastern section of the building).
In terms of local plan policy, the eastern section of the Viking Aparthotel subject to this proposal is located within an area designated as Predominantly Residential Use in the Ramsey Local Plan (No. 2) Order 1998, Map No. 2 (South). The southern section of the site is located within an area designated as Mixed Use. The site is not located within a Conservation Area, but does border the south of Ramsey Conservation Area, which extends around St. Paul's Church.
The relevant planning policies from the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 are General Policy 2, Environment Policy 36, Housing Policy 5, Housing Policy 17 and Recreation Policy 3.
Environment Policy 36 states; Where development is proposed outside of, but close to, the boundary of a Conservation Area, this will only be permitted where it will not detrimentally affect important views into and out of the Conservation Area.
Housing Policy 5 states; In granting planning permission on land zoned for residential development or in predominantly residential areas the Department will normally require that of provision should be made up of affordable housing. This policy will apply to developments of 8 dwellings or more.
Housing Policy 17 states; The conversion of buildings into flats will generally be permitted in residential areas provided that:
Recreation Policy 3 states; Where appropriate, new development should include the provision of landscaped amenity areas as an integral part of the design. New residential development of ten or more dwellings must make provision for recreational and amenity space in accordance with the standards specified in Appendix 6 to the Plan.
Government Circular No. 293/82, The Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, The Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982, contains the following information about occupancy which is considered relevant to this application;
Schedule 2, Maximum Occupancy Net floor area (flats for permanent occupation); 30 sq. m. or more but less than 45 sq. m. Maximum number of occupants; 1
The Department of Social Care Housing Division has commented on the application. They originally stated that as the applicant proposes 12 new residential units, 3 of the units should be provided as affordable housing and these properties should comply with the Department's Guide to Public Sector Housing Standards Document. However, it was subsequently discovered that the proposed flats would not be suitable as affordable housing and would not be eligible for funding from the Housing Purchase Assistance Scheme, due to their floor area being lower than 55 square metres.
The Manx Electricity Authority have stated that the applicant should contact the M.E.A. Planning Department in order to discuss the electricity supply for this application.
Ramsey Town Commissioners have no objection to the proposal. Ramsey Town Commissioners act as Agent to the Water and Sewerage Authority in relation to all functions under the Sewerage Act within the Town of Ramsey. The Water and Sewerage Authority has written to the planning authority in response to this application with general notes about the property's drainage. They state that the proposed dwelling must be connected to the public sewer(s) in a manner which they find acceptable and that all drainage works must conform to the requirements of "Manx Sewers for Adoption" and all necessary inspections/survey are to be carried out at the developer's expense. The Authority also states that in accordance with the Sewerage Act
1999, a communication fee will be payable to them for the property being connected to the public drainage system and the applicant must give them 21 days notice in writing, prior to making any communication to the public sewer. They advise that the applicant should contact them to discuss this matter.
The Department of Infrastructure Highways Division recommend that the application is approved. They state that 12 parking spaces would be adequate for the flats, considering the location and proximity of public transport.
This proposal should be assessed with regard to General Policy 2, Environment Policy 36, Housing Policy 5, Housing Policy 17 and Recreation Policy 3 from the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007. Government Circular 293/82, The Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982 is also relevant in the assessment.
General Policy 2; The site is zoned as Predominantly Residential Use in the Ramsey Local Plan (No. 2) Order 1998, Map No. 2 (South), so the proposed use of the site is in accordance with the land use zoning and would therefore be more suitable than the current use (offices).
The general amenity standards of the flats will be discussed in the assessment of Housing Policy 17. Environment Policy 36; Due to the fact that the site is adjacent to the Ramsey Conservation Area, this proposal must be assessed against this policy to ensure that the development would not detrimentally affect important views into and out of the Conservation Area.
The site is part of a 1970's development in south Ramsey, which is not of historical interest and which does not contribute positively towards the views in and out of the Conservation Area. The part of the Conservation Area which borders the site is the rear of the curtilage of St. Paul's Church, which is a Registered Building (RB 84).
It is fair to say that this proposal would not change the external appearance of the site and therefore the impact on the adjacent Conservation Area would not change. For that reason this proposal is judged to comply with Environment Policy 36.
Housing Policy 5; As this proposal would create 8 or more residential units on land zoned for predominantly residential use, Housing Policy 5 would normally require of the units to be provided as affordable housing. However, the floor area of the flats proposed in this application would be either 30 or 40 square metres, which is lower than the minimum of 55 square metres required for affordable housing or the Housing Purchase Assistance Scheme.
There are many other existing flats within the Aparthotel and this proposal would return these flats back to their original intended use. Furthermore, a previous planning application for the conversion of 11 apartments from tourist to residential use did not have to provide affordable housing (PA 08/01908/C).
Housing Policy 17; This policy is to ensure that converted flats have adequate residential amenity. The proposed flats would not have any external space for clothes drying, although there would be a laundry located on the second floor for the resident's use and there is also a public laundrette nearby in St. Paul's Square.
The flats would be located on the second floor of the building and would have views westwards over St. Paul's Square from the principal room. The kitchen and shower rooms would be internal.
The existing offices have a total of 25 car parking spaces. The Parking Standards in Appendix 7 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 require 1 bedroom apartments to have 1 space each, which would be a total of 12 spaces. There may be a case to lower the parking standards, due to the location of the site within the town centre near to shops, offices and bus routes. However, the agent has stated that several of the 25 spaces could be made available to the flats. A previous planning application to convert 11 apartments from tourist to residential use provided 11 parking spaces (PA 08/01908/C). It is therefore thought to be appropriate to condition the approval so that sufficient parking spaces are provided, in order to comply with the Strategic Plan. This would result in a total of 12 spaces being allocated for the flats.
Recreation Policy 3; This policy requires applications for new residential development of ten or more dwellings to provide recreational and amenity space, as set out in Appendix 6 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan. However, it is considered that it would not be reasonable to apply this policy to the application as the proposal would return the flats back to their original intended use. A previous planning application to convert 11 apartments from tourist to residential use did not have to provide recreational and amenity space (PA 08/01908/C). Further to this, there are areas of open space within the town, such as parks and beaches, which can be used by the residents.
Government Circular No. 293/82, The Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, The Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982; One of the purposes of this Act is ensures that flats meet the minimum floor area for permanent or tourist occupation. The minimum requirement for flats for permanent occupation is 30 square metres.
Eleven of the flats proposed in this current application would be 30 square metres and one of the flats would be 40 square metres, so they would all meet the minimum requirement for permanent occupancy. There are many existing flats within the Aparthotel which have the same floor area.
For the above reasons, this application is considered to be acceptable and is recommended for approval, subject to conditions.
The local authority is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2005, paragraph 6 (5) (c) and (d), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded party status.
The Department of Social Care Housing Division should be afforded party status. The Manx Electric Authority should not be afforded party status. The Department of Transport Highways Division is now part of the Department of Infrastructure of which the planning authority is part. As such, the Highways and Traffic Division cannot be afforded party status in this instance.
Recommended Decision: Permitted
Date of Recommendation: 28.02.2011 28 February 2011 10/01119/B
N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal
C 1. The development hereby permitted shall commence before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice.
C 2. This approval relates to the conversion of existing offices to twelve permanent apartments, as shown in drawing number 10 0688/1, date stamped 26 July 2010.
C 3. A total of twelve parking spaces shall be provided for the apartments.
I confirm that this decision has been made by the Planning Authority in accordance with the authority afforded to it under the Town and Country (Development Procedure) 2005
Decision Made : Permitted Authority Meeting Date : 10.03 .11
Signed : Presenting Officer Further to the decision of the Authority an additional report/condition reason is required. Signing Officer to delete as appropriate
YES/NO
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