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| Application No.: | 13/91155/B |
| Applicant: | Mr Glenn Kinrade |
| Proposal: | Conversion of existing first floor office to additional living accommodation for upper floor apartment |
| Site Address: | 4 Market Place East Ramsey Isle Of Man IM8 1JY |
| Case Officer: | Mr Edmond Riley |
| Photo Taken: | 05.11.2013 |
| Site Visit: | 05.11.2013 |
| Expected Decision Level: | Officer Delegation |
1.1 The application site is number 4 Market Place, Ramsey. Number 4 is a three-storey, pink-rendered building, with accommodation in the roofspace, situated on the southeastern corner of Ramsey’s town centre car park. The ground floor is a retail unit, albeit currently unoccupied; above this, the second storey is office use and the third storey and roofspace are given over to residential. The applicant advises that the office and residential space is also unoccupied. The application site, which is within Ramsey’s Conservation Area, is part of the terrace lining the eastern side of Ramsey’s car park, and is surrounded by a variety of land uses typical to an edge-of-centre town location. The age of the building is unknown, but it is conceivably pre-1920s.
2.1 Approval is sought for the conversion of the office use on the second storey to residential, with the result that the uses in the building would be retail at ground floor and a three-bedroomed residential unit in the three storeys above. The sole proposed external alteration is the replacement of a rear window at the second storey level with a white uPVC door to provide an additional entrance to the residential unit. Internal alterations on every floor bar the ground floor are proposed.
3.1 The application site has not been the subject of any previous planning applications considered of material relevance to the determination of the current application, although a recent approval relating to number 3 Dale Street, which is adjacent the application site, is of relevance:
4.1 In terms of local plan policy, the application site is within an area recognised as being within mixed use (Town Centre) under the Ramsey Local Plan Order 1998. There are three policies within Planning Circular 2/99, the written statement that accompanies the local plan,
considered specifically material to the assessment of this current planning application. Policy R/R/P4: Use of Upper Floors for Residential Purposes reads in part: "The upper floors above shops are often under-used. Use of this space for residential purposes will be encouraged, subject to compliance with the Housing (Flats) Regulations". 4.2 The written statement notes the designation of Ramsey's Conservation Area, but then goes on to state "the issues of Conservation Area status...[is] not considered to be appropriate to determination in the context of the Local Plan but will be subject to separate consideration'. However, Policy R/E/P6: Terraces, which follows the above text, reads (in part): "There will be a general presumption in favour of retention of traditional uniform frontages on all pre-1920s buildings in terraces'. 4.3 Policy R/TC/P3: Upper Floors is within the Town Centre chapter of the written statement, and reads in full: "The use of upper floors as retail units, offices and apartments shall be encouraged particularly where premises are currently vacant (see also Pooicy . 4.4 In terms of Strategic Plan policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 contains four policies that are considered specifically material to the assessment of this planning application. General Policy 2 states in part: "Development which is in accordance with the land-use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan and with other policies of this Strategic Plan will normally be permitted, provided that the development:
4.5 Environment Policy 10 states: "Where development is proposed on any site where in the opinion of the Department of Local Government and the Environment there is a potential risk of flooding, a flood risk assessment and details of proposed mitigation measures must accompany any application for planning permission". 4.6 Environment Policy 34 reads: "In the maintenance, alteration or extension of pre-1920 buildings, the use of traditional materials will be preferred". 4.7 Environment Policy 35 reads: "Within Conservation Areas, the Department will permit only development which would preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Area, and will ensure that the special features contributing to the character and quality are protected against inappropriate development".
5.1 Ramsey Town Commissioners have no objections to the proposal. 5.2 The Highways Division note that two parking spaces would normally be required for development such as that proposed but, taking into account its current use and available car park and promenade parking, do not oppose the application.
5.3 The Environmental Health Officer of the Department of Environment, Food \& Agriculture (DEFA) advises that the works proposed, if implemented, must be in compliance with the Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982 prior to any occupation.
6.1 As noted, only one external alteration is proposed. As such, the primary purpose of the assessment will be to examine the principle of the use - and the consequent loss of office space - in this location. Given it is unclear if the application site is of pre-1920s construction, it remains appropriate to consider the policies that make reference to such buildings. The various policies of the Ramsey Local Plan written statement are especially instructive in these regards; together, they provide support for the bringing into use of redundant space, and especially where this is residential use above a retail unit and does not affect the uniform frontage of a pre-1920s terrace. On this basis, no objection is raised in respect of Local Plan Policy. 6.2 This conclusion, which relates to the principle of the use, also serves to demonstrate that the proposal is in conformity with Environment Policy 35 of the Strategic Plan. Because the proposed use is considered acceptable, it is further considered that the proposed use would preserve the Conservation Area in terms of the historic uses found here. 6.3 The acceptability of the principle of development in general is also largely covered by the above conclusions, although it is worth briefly considering Environment Policy 10, which states that any proposed development in an area where there is potential risk of flooding must undergo a flood risk assessment and details of proposed mitigation measures must accompany any planning application. Given the level and scale of the proposal, no flood risk assessment was sought by the Division as the proposed change of use is considered highly unlikely to have an adverse impact on flooding in the area. 6.4 While this type of development would normally require two parking spaces, the addition of more residential space within the building is considered unlikely to have any serious impact in terms of parking or highways safety. Perhaps if a new residential use were proposed, this conclusion would be different. The presence of ample parking and the cramped nature of the site make the provision of parking spaces unnecessary in this instance. 6.5 It is noted that the proposed door, to the rear of the application site and therefore not visible to (or even easily accessible by) the public, would be white uPVC. While this would not ordinarily be acceptable in a Conservation Area, and would also not comply with Environment Policy 34 of the Strategic Plan, the relative invisibility of the door makes its non-traditional materials unobjectionable in this instance. This conclusion is supported by the officer assessment made in relation to the approval granted adjacent the current application site, which sought the installation of uPVC windows to a front - and thus far more visible elevation. No objection is therefore raised in respect of Environment Policy 34. 6.6 Turning to the letter sent from DEFA to the applicant, which also underlines the provisions of Policy R/R/P4 of the Ramsey Local Plan written statement, it is recommended that an advisory note regarding compliance with the Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982 be appended to any approval that may be forthcoming. It is considered inappropriate to make this a condition of planning approval on the basis that DEFA will enforce this legal requirement. 6.7 The planning application is not considered to affect any other material consideration.
7.1 On the basis that the level of harm considered likely to arise is not sufficient to warrant an objection, a recommendation of approval is made in this case.
8.1 The local authority, Ramsey Town Commissioners, is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013, Article 6 (5) (e), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded interested person status. 8.2 The Highways Division is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013, Article 6 (5) (d), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded interested person status. 8.3 The Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013, Article 6 (5) (c), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded interested person status.
Recommended Decision: Permitted
Date of 02.12.2013 Recommendation:
C 1. The development hereby permitted shall commence before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice.
C 2. The development hereby approved shall not be carried out except in full accordance with the following plans, date-stamped as having been received 2nd October 2013: SM13/320/1 and SM13/320/2.
N 1. The applicant is strongly advised to contact the Department of Environment, Food \& Agriculture prior to the commencement of the development hereby approved to ensure compliance with the Housing (Flats) Regulations 1982.
I confirm that this decision accords with the appropriate Government Circular delegating functions to Director of Planning and Building Control / Development Control Manager/ Senior Planning Officer.
Decision Made : Permitted Date : Determining officer (delete as appropriate) Signed : Anthony Holmes Senior Planning Officer Signed : Michael Gallagher Director of Planning and Building Control
Signed : Sarah Corlett Senior Planning Officer Signed : Jennifer Chance Development Control Manager
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