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THIS APPLICATION IS REFERRED TO THE PLANNING COMMITTEE AS THERE ARE THREE OBJECTIONS FROM PARTIES WHOSE PROPERTIES ABUT THE SITE AND THE APPLICATION IS RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL.
THE SITE The site represents the curtilage of Lorne House, a large house situated between Bridge Road, Douglas Street, Brewery Wharf apartments and School Lane which abuts Victoria Road Primary School. The entrance to the site is from Douglas Street at its junction with School Lane where there are three properties which back onto the site - Lorne House Lodge, Stable Cottage and Coach House Cottage.
Lorne House sits in its own grounds with lawns, trees and flower beds to the south west, a tennis court to the west, lawns to the rear (north east) and a kitchen garden to the south east are fields on which sheep are sometimes grazed. There is presently a compound area when the tennis courts were previously, whilst works are undertaken around the site. At the entrance to the site there is the remains of a former piggery building which has recently been demolished due to fears over its stability - a structural report was commissioned in this respect.
Lorne House dates back in its original form, to 1826 and not surprisingly has historical importance having accommodated the Lieutenant Governor in 1832. The house has been altered over time although retains its status and character as a landmark building in its own grounds although seen by relatively few due to the high stone wall which runs around the grounds. The house is visible from the upper levels of Castle Rushen.
PLANNING STATUS The site lies within an area of Residential use within the grounds which are designated as Private Woodland on the Castletown Local Plan of 1991. The draft Town Plan of 2001 identifies the site as Woodland with a section to the north west of the house as Proposed Residential or Office development In Parkland. The draft Southern Area Plan which was published on 23rd October, 2009 identifies the site as Woodland with the area of Registered Trees defined and a scheduled Ancient Monument in the grounds also shown, a burial ground and possible assembly field at one time.
The site also lies within Castletown's Conservation Area. Lorne House is not Registered but is on the list of buildings worthy of investigation for such status.
PLANNING HISTORY The following applications have been submitted in respect of this site: PA 10/01059/B - Erection of boundary wall to extend existing wall Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01048/B - Demolition of existing garage and erection of a replacement garage block Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01046/B - Creation of a new vehicular access and driveway Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01042/C - Change of use from existing mixed office and residential accommodation into a private dwelling Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01037/B - Erection of stone wall to replace existing boundary fencing adjacent to Smetana Close Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01040/B - Demolition of existing outbuildings and erection of a gatehouse dwelling
Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/01039/B - Relocation of existing tennis court Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/00986/B - Erection of MEA sub station (retrospective) Status - Pending Consideration PA 10/0409 - Erection of a stone wall, iron railings and entrance gate (Retrospective) Status - Permitted 25th May 2010 - appeal in progress PA 05/01368/B - Erection of two houses with a single shared vehicular access from Bridge Street Status - Refused at Appeal - 3rd May 2006 PA 05/00340/B - Installation of a satellite dish on west elevation of Status - Permitted 28th April 2005 PA 97/00682/B - Erection of satellite dish, Lorne House, Castletown. Initial Decision - Permitted 3rd September 1997 PA 92/00364/B - Installation of Cattle Grid, inside entrance to Lorne House, Castletown Status - Permitted PA 91/00626/C - Change of use of domestic accommodation to office and domestic, Lorne House West, Castletown. Status - Permitted PA 89/01784/B - Construction of dormer in roof, How-yn-Gren, Douglas Street, Castletown. Status - Permitted PA 88/01705/B - Three-storey extension to form dining room and extra bedrooms, Lorne House, Castletown Status - Permitted PA 88/00714/B - Alterations and extensions to form new dining room and staircase, Lorne House, Castletown. Status - Permitted PA 88/00175/B - Erection of additional garage incorporating pitched roof over, How Yngren, Douglas Road, Castletown Status - Permitted PA 85/00107/B - Alterations, conversions and extensions to form additional living accommodation, How Yngren, Douglas Street, Castletown Status - Permitted
Proposed now is retrospective approval for the erection of walling near to the entrance. The walling abuts How Yngren - the property immediately to the east. The section of wall to be rebuilt is 6.7 m long and will be generally 3.4 m high built from concrete blockwork and finished in Manx stone to match the walling alongside.
An occupant of 11, Queen Street expresses concern at the number of applications submitted in respect of this property which is of historical interest and asks why the various changes are proposed (not including any reference to the change of use proposed in this application).
The occupants of 10, Bridge Street expresses astonishment that the building is not Registered and suggests that it should be and any application for it should be judged on the basis of Planning Policy Statement 1/01 and objects on this basis. There is no assessment of the proposal and no evidence or information as to why the proposal does not satisfy the requirements of this policy.
The Trustees of the SPT Keig Will Trust objects to the application on exactly the same basis as the occupants of 10, Bridge Street. Both parties refer to an application for erection of boundary rail, not wall.
Castletown Commissioners indicate that they do not oppose the application. The owner of The Malt House expresses concern at the retrospective element of the scheme and seeks assurance that if approved, no significant alterations are approved.
The owner of Lorne House Lodge objects to the application on the basis that the wall is out of keeping due to its height and the fact that it looks as if it has a damp proof course, it is not a solid stone wall and the line of the wall as built is not as shown on the drawings and may inhibit access for How Yngren.
The proposal should be considered in respect of Environment Policy 35 which states: "Within Conservation Areas, the Department will permit only development which would preserve or enhance the character of appearance of the area, and will ensure that the special features contributing to the character and quality are protected against inappropriate development".
In this case the works do not harm or significantly alter the character of Lorne House, nor its historical value and as such is considered acceptable. The section of wall is very small and does not have any public impact. it is disappointing that those parties who have objected to all of the applications with the same reason for each have not distinguished between the various applications, which are widely different in scale and impact.
As the property is located within the Castletown Conservation Area designated in 1990, the content of this application has been considered with particular regard to Policy CA/2 SPECIAL PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS of Conservation Areas as set out within Planning Policy Statement 1/01- Policy and Guidance Notes for the Conservation of the Historic Environment of the Isle of Man.
As commented on by the Planning Officer, Lorne House has been suggested for inclusion on the Protected Buildings Register in the draft Southern Area Plan, published on the 23rd October 2009.
These proposals seek to regularise works that have already commenced on site. The works are not overly visible from outside of the boundary walls and are not considered to be detrimental to the character of the Castletown Conservation Area as they are constructed in the locally sourced Limestone. In similar fashion to the other applications being considered on Lorne House, consideration should be given to the impact of these proposals on any archaeological interest. If this is found to be acceptable to Manx National Heritage, the proposals are acceptable.
The local authority is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2005, paragraph 6 (5) (d), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded party status.
The occupants/owners/trustees of 2 and 10, Bridge Street are physically adjacent to the site should be afforded party status on the basis of 2(1)(a) of Government Circular 1/06 - Determination of Interested Party Status. However, neither of these parties is directly affected by the proposal nor do they raise any specific or material objection to the application and as such, as the Circular states that parties owning or residing in land or buildings which physically adjoin the site shall "generally" be afforded party status, in this case the Committee may consider it inappropriate to afford party status to these parties.
The owner of The Malt House is associated with property which physically abuts the site and as such should be afforded party status. The owner of 11, Queen Street is not directly affected by the proposal and as such should not be afforded party status in this case. LORNE HOUSE LODGE GREEN PARTY STATUS
Recommended Decision: Permitted
Date of Recommendation: 25.08.2010
C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal
C 1.
This permission relates to the erection of a section of boundary wall as shown in drawing 01 received on 13th July, 2010.
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 : Attend Authority Meeting Date : 2/9/10 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
26 August 2010 10/01043/B Page 6 of 6
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