Springwaters Approval in Principle Statement

Armitage House, Lord Street, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 1LE. Tel: (01624) 672050. Fax: (01624) 629237, (01624) 615465. E-mail: [email protected]. Website: www.savagechadwick.com

Directors:

M. Savage BA DIP Arch(Liverpool), RIBA, ACA, MaPS P.E. Chadwick BA Hons Dip Arch(Oxford), RIBA, MaPS

13 00918

Our Ref: MS/jd/SC1197

29th July 2013

Department of Infrastructure Murray House Mount Havelock Douglas

FAO Secretary to the Planning Committee

RECEIVED ON 31 JUL 2013 DEPARTMENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE

Dear Sirs

Proposed Dwelling and Equestrian Centre, Springwaters, Ballamodha, Malew Application for Approval in Principle

Further to discussions with your Department and the Department of Economic Development concerning this Application we enclose four copies of the application along with the appropriate fee – agreed as being 50% of previous (13/00339) application – see attached.

This application addresses the Reason for Refusal of PA13/00339 in June 2013 following discussion with the Planning Department and the Department of Economic Development. The following changes have consequently been made to the scheme proposals, namely:

1. The proposed dwelling has been moved back into the former residential curtailage and back into the hillside.
2. The existing access to Close Clarke has been closed and that property (and all other outbuildings and residential buildings) is now proposed to be demolished. The staff accommodation in connection with the main dwelling is now provided as two dwellings nearer to the proposed access. All vehicle access will now therefore be taken via the new access.
3. The equestrian centre has been moved away from the main dwelling, eliminating the continuous line of development.
4. In addition to the above, a more detailed description of the economic benefits the Applicant will bring to the Isle of Man will be provided by the department of Economic development.

In consideration of the vehicular access. The concerns of the Inspector were understood as forward visibility in the southerly direction was limited due to the extent of land ownership of the Applicant at the time. The Applicant has however now acquired a right of access over neighbouring land which allows a forward visibility of 215M x 2M as required by the Inspector.

The previous Inspector also had concerns over visual impact due to the re-profiling of the Manx sod hedge to create the splays. You will note from the attached photograph that the Manx sod hedge is located 1.5 metres back from the road due to a drainage ditch. The alteration to the hedge would therefore be minimal. The front would have to be marginally cut back and the rear section correspondingly built out, with large bushes removed. From the road this visual impact would be minimal.

.../cont'd

M. Norrey MCIAT SAVAGE & CHADWICK ARCHITECTS LIMITED Co. Reg. 43736 VAT Reg. No. 001-9068 12

...cont.2 29th July 2013 Springwaters

With reference to Housing Policy 14. The reason the Applicant has been in discussion with both Planning Department and the Department of Economic Development (DED) is to explore the potential for satisfaction of the criteria set in the draft Planning Policy Statement on Planning and the Economy promoted by the Department of Economic Development. The Applicant would like to return to the Isle of Man with his family and relocate significant portions of his business, which is conducted on a global scale.

It should be noted that in the Inspector's Report (PA/1803/B) paragraph 32 refers to the lack of Policy support for "high net worth individuals" in the Strategic Plan. At the time of writing, the Inspector was correct, however since that time a Policy, all be it in draft form, has been introduced which differentiates the current application from PA09/1803/B.

As the Applicant requires an equestrian centre, large house and significant land holding to support both, the PPS on Planning and the Economy is a more relevant Planning Policy by which the application should be judged. To this end using the criteria set by the PPS, due diligence on the applicant is currently being carried out by DED who will subsequently submit their more detailed views to this application.

As referenced above this application includes the provision of a large purpose built Equestrian Centre. This facility would be a private one – solely for the use of the Applicant and his family and friends. Facilities include indoor and outdoor arenas along with stabling and fenced pastures for 12 horses. Note has been taken of IOMSP para 7.15 – Equestrian Pursuits – in the preliminary design. This criteria is referenced later in this submission.

The Main House contains 8 bedrooms, an indoor leisure wing and garaging for 16 classic cars. A breakdown of the living accommodation and ancillary accommodation (and their size) is provided along with indicative layouts of both main house and equestrian centre.

Various alternative sites have been considered by the Applicant in considering his move to the Isle of Man including the potential sites identified by the Southern Area Plan. Unfortunately an equestrian facility of this kind requires a minimum of 20 acres of landholding to build and support it. Consequently all of these sites are too small. As this site has a total landholding of 46 acres it is completely suitable for all required accommodation. A list of the properties considered by the Applicant is attached.

Following consideration of the above sites, the Applicant much prefers the application site for the following personal and planning reasons;

1. The landholding is large enough for both main house, surrounding external works, landscaped gardens and the equestrian centre and pasture land to support it.
2. The condition of the majority of the application site is that of scrub. The land is not currently farmed and it is not good farming land. There would be no loss of agricultural land as a result of this development and by creating fenced pastures by draining and re profiling the land the Applicant will create useful land.
3. The site is close to Ronaldsway IOM Airport. The Applicant's business is global and he requires quick access to the City of London along with international connections to support his business.
4. The site has beautiful views to the south and east but with no significant sized settlements nearby. In addition the tree lined backdrop of the site is set against rising hill land. Consequently the site is not prominent when viewed from the south and east and not visible at all from the north and west. In fact the only road from which the site is visible is the B30 Bayrruyr Road. Before and after montages from the nearest point of that road provided with this application show that the visual impact of the development would be minimal.

.../cont'd

...cont.3 29th July 2013 Springwaters

1. Three dwellings and outbuildings currently occupy this site. Two of these dwellings are to be demolished and the development will sit on their "footprint". The third property – Close Clarke – is to be retained and converted to staff accommodation. All buildings could be occupied and one is currently tenanted. The site can therefore be considered to have been previously developed under the definition provided in the IOMSP.

1. Whilst properties for sale currently exist on the IOM that provide the required landholding along with a bigger house or houses, in general the landholding is already farmed – either directly or through a tenancy. The provision of an Equestrian Centre in this context would therefore be in contravention of Environment Policy 20 of the IOMSP which states that development of equestrian facilities will only be accepted where there is no loss of high quality agricultural land.

1. Environment Policy 20 of the IOMSP states that there will be a presumption against large scale Equestrian Developments in areas of High Landscape or Coastal Value and Scenic Significance. This site does not fall under these categories.

1. The current access is poor yet serves three dwellings and a storage/ amenity area of the adjacent property. The provision of a new access removes two of these dwellings from that access.

The economic benefits of the development are being assessed by the Department of Economic Development and the Applicant is content to rely on their advice to the Planning Department based upon the Applicant's submission to them. It should be pointed out however that the construction value of this proposal is significant and will generate considerable work for the Island's Construction Industry in the short term and create jobs in the longer term. The completed development will employ eight people – two/ three stable hands, two housekeepers, two landscape gardeners and one general maintenance person.

In summary this application will provide both short and longer term economic benefits to the Isle of Man, a quality private equestrian facility, considerable land improvement, and yet will have very little visual impact and no environmental harm. The chosen site is, for the reasons demonstrated, the most suitable for the Applicant's needs, and the Planning Department/Committee are urged to consider the wider benefits to the Isle of Man that an approval of this application would bring.

Should you have any queries in connection with this application please do not hesitate to contact the Writer at this Office.

Yours faithfully

M Savage For Savage and Chadwick Architects

cc Mr M Quirk Mr G Radcliffe Mr N Wilson DED