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The application site represents the curtilage of Ballasalla Farm and its associated farmland. The site is accessed by way of a private lane on the west side of the Jurby Coast Road, south of Jurby Nurseries and Water Gardens.
The existing buildings on the site include the main farmhouse, an L-shaped stone barn used as tourist accommodation and a granny flat, plus a large modern barn. The buildings are located in close proximity to each other at the bottom of the access lane.
The L-shaped barn contains 3 separate units in the two storey section. These include a two storey granny flat in the southern part and 2 tourist units in the northern part, with one on each floor.
Proposed is the change of use of the existing tourist accommodation (2 units) to permanent residential apartments. I visited the site on 10 November 2010 and spoke to the applicant who stated that the use of the units as tourist accommodation had not yet been implemented. He also stated that it is not his intention to sell the apartments off from the main house.
No external alterations are proposed.
The following previous planning applications are considered relevant in the assessment and determination of this application;
03/00634/A - Permitted 28.11.03 Approval in principle for the conversion of part of barn to holiday accommodation. Condition 4; The conversion should utilise existing openings and not introduce any extensions or insertions into the roof.
03/00635/B - Permitted 28.11.03 Extension to barn to form a granny flat. Condition 3; The accommodation created by this approval must be as accommodation ancillary to that of the existing dwelling. For the avoidance of doubt, no approval should hereby be conferred by this approval for the use of the new accommodation as a separate dwelling.
04/01957/B - Permitted 11/11/04 Conversion of part of barn to two holiday accommodation units. Condition 3; In order to preserve the character of the barn all windows and doors hereby approved must be constructed of wood. Condition 4; Between the beginning of Easter and the end of September the buildings must only be used as holiday accommodation, with no individual let exceeding four weeks in duration.
The application site is located within an area designated as White Land that is not designated for development, in addition to an Area of High Landscape or Coastal Value and Scenic Significance in the Isle of Man Development Order 1982. The site is not located within a Conservation Area.
The relevant planning policies from the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 are General Policy 3, Environment Policy 2 and Housing Policy 11.
The Environmental Health Officer from the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture has commented on the application. They state that, on completion of the works, the apartments must comply with the requirements of the Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982 and be registered thereafter under the same Regulations prior to any of them being occupied.
The Department of Infrastructure Highways Division do not object to this proposal, as there are no traffic management, parking or road safety implications.
Jurby Parish Commissioners have no objection to the proposal.
The owners and/or occupiers of Glebe Cottage, Kirk Maughold have commented on the application. They state that no justification appears to be put forward to support this proposal and wonder what the Tourist Board would say. They are also concerned that this proposal is a way around current planning policy and therefore should be resisted.
The site is located in an area of High Landscape Value and the planning history indicates that the units were originally part of an agricultural barn. Therefore, the relevant planning policies from the Strategic Plan are General Policy 3, Environment Policy 2 and Housing Policy 11.
The purpose of Environment Policy 2 is to ensure that areas designated as High Landscape or Coastal Value and Scenic Significance are protected from development which would harm the character and quality of the landscape, unless the location for the development is essential. The building subject to this application already exists and this proposal would not alter its external or internal appearance. It is therefore considered that this proposal would not have an adverse impact on the character of the landscape.
I visited the site on 10 November 2010 and spoke to the applicant, Mr Carey. He stated that the units have not yet been used as tourist accommodation and that he now intends to use them as residential. I had a quick look inside the ground floor unit and it seemed that the building works to convert the barn were nearing completion, but were not yet finished. Following my visit, I contacted the Department of Economic Development for further information and they confirmed that the units have not been registered with them as Tourist Accommodation.
As the barn has not yet been fully implemented as tourist accommodation, this proposal should be considered as if it were the conversion of a barn to two residential dwellings, rather than from tourist to residential accommodation. In terms of General Policy 3 and Housing Policy 11, the redundancy of the agricultural use of the barn has already been established through its conversion to holiday accommodation under PA 04/01957/B. As such, questions regarding the structural stability of the building, or its architectural, historic or social interest are no longer an issue. No physical alterations or extensions are proposed as part of this application, so there are no concerns about the appearance of the building.
The applicant does not intend the units to be in separate ownership than the main house. However, by their nature, it is considered that the units would be independent of the main house. The barn is detached from the main dwelling and the inhabitants of the units would be able to live separately, coming and going and having their own visitors, independently of the main house. The units are therefore not considered to be ancillary, as that would mean they were being used by the people of the main property, in a secondary manner.
Within the Strategic Plan, there are no policies against the loss of existing tourist accommodation. The existing policies which are applied to proposed tourist developments within the countryside, are done so with as much weight as they are to residential. However, it is important to judge whether there are any issues which cause the units to be acceptable as tourist accommodation, but not as residential.
The previous application for the conversion of the barn to tourist accommodation (PA 04/01957/B) did not reveal any concerns with the units being changed to residential use in the future. The officer's report from PA 04/01957/B simply stated that "The barn readily lends itself to sympathetic conversion into holiday accommodation and approval in principle for the conversion was previously granted through 03/00634/A. There are no objections to the proposal and I recommend that the application be approved."
The barn is an attractive stone building, which has been sympathetically converted to tourist accommodation (although this use has not yet been taken up). The granny flat section of the barn was newly erected as an extension under PA 03/00635/B. From visiting the site, it was noticed that the granny flat extension is in keeping with the remainder of the building and that its new stone work cannot be distinguished from the original.
The units have over 60 square metres of floor space each, which is sufficient for residential living accommodation. Both units have a good clear outlook and there is outdoor amenity space available
for parking and garden areas. Given the adjacent granny flat, it is considered that the adjacent uses are compatible with residential accommodation.
Overall, it is considered that the barn is an attractive building which can be converted without being extended or losing its character, there is sufficient parking and amenity space available and the units are an acceptable size for residential use. The adjacent uses are compatible with residential accommodation and no issues have been found with the units being used as residential accommodation rather than tourist.
RECOMMENDATION For the above reasons, this proposal is considered to be acceptable and is recommended for approval. PARTY STATUS
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 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.
The Environmental Health Officer from the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture does not meet with any of the criteria of Government Circular 1/06 and therefore should not be awarded party status in this instance.
The owners and/or occupiers of Glebe Cottage, Kirk Maughold reside a significant distance from the application site and therefore should not be awarded party status in this instance.
Recommendation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 13.12.2010 Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal O : Notes attached to refusals
The use must be taken up within four years of the date of this notice in order for this approval to remain valid after that time.
This approval relates to the change of use of existing tourist accommodation to permanent apartments, as shown in drawing numbers 10 742 01, 10 742 02 and 10 742 03, date stamped 26th October 2010.
20 December 2010 10/01573/C Page 4 of 5
I confirm that this decision accords with the appropriate Government Circular delegating functions to the Senior Planning Officer.
Decision Made : Permitted Date : 22/12/10
Signed : ______________________________
Senior Planning Officer
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