Planning Statement // Temporary change of use from school grounds to luxury camping in connection with the TT for the dates 28th May to 8th June 2013
Dear Peter,
I am writing you this Planning Statement regarding the Hotel Bell Tent Planning Application for the temporary change of use of the Ballakermeen School grounds to luxury camping during the TT races. The letter is also in response to your notes from the 24th September 2013 regarding the queries you had over the original application I made mid September.
Firstly, I'd like to take the opportunity to tell you about our intended plans for the TT accommodation we'd like to provide. We would like to provide luxury camping on the playing field of Ballakermeen High School with our service open from Friday 30th May to Friday 6th June. However our planning application will include the set up and take down days 28th May to 8th June. We intend to provide up to 60 canvas bell tents with various packages available to accommodate TT guests. All our tents come equipped with Tealight chandeliers (LED or candle), hand loomed Indian block colour rugs, Jute Door mats, luxury inflatable beds, a mirror, bamboo centre pole, low level Indian tables, fire extinguisher and various samples to enhance the guest's experience. We have various bedding packages too where customers can order Egyptian cotton Linen with bath towels and 13.5 tog duvets with a cosy mattress topper. Our camp is laid out aesthetically with 4m walkways between tents lit by solar lights outside the front guy rope.
We will have a dedicated team of reception/maintenance staff wearing Purple Hotel Bell Tent T shirts to be on hand to check in guests to Hotel Bell Tent and maintain the tents during the event with a 24/7 point of contact. Guests will have use of toilets throughout the event, parking and breakfast served by the school. There will be 24/7 security and CCTV in use to guard the school grounds as well as traffic officers to ensure a smooth running of the existing one way system flowing from Westminster Drive onto St Catherine's Drive at ALL TIMES. Guests will have use of hot showers before 8.30am and after 6pm so as not to disturb school activities and again we will put a Hotel Bell Tent member of staff on duty during these activities. I have organised for hessian material to be mounted on the perimeter fence of the playing field to act as an acoustic wall to limit noise levels- we are not expecting high noise levels as we are aware the site is in a residential area and we will be monitoring levels 24/7.
Regarding your letter of queries, here are my responses.
We would only like to apply for 1 year as we cannot be sure of School exam time tables for 2015 yet and this is an important thing to work around for both Hotel Bell Tent and the school.
The application (as stated above) does include the dates for set up and take down of Hotel Bell Tent.
11th October 2013
I have included the Traffic signage to show for reference only until Hazel gives them the OK, however she did send through guidelines and the yellow signs I have included now are the new versions with all legal dimensions, font and style.
We are more than happy to limit the camping to the green area marked out on the Location map, please take this letter as confirmation.
I have spoken to Julie Edge at Ballakermeen High School about sending a letter to the planners regarding their endorsement and how Hotel Bell Tent will affect school activities.
An extra £10 is in the post to meet the £240 cost of the 2014 application you requested in your letter.
Thank you very much for reading this Planning Statement and please do look at our website for more information to see what we do and how we do it www.hotelbelltent.co.uk.
