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Forest Homes 2016 Limited Plot of land & stone barn, Rowany Drive, Pt. Erin Preliminary planning statement
General description
The proposal is for a brownfield development of six detached dwellings within the settlement of Pt. Erin.
A variety of attractive house styles and sizes are included within the proposal, including new build dormer bungalows for which there is significant demand across the Island.
Rowany Drive is a highly sustainable residential location, both in terms of access to services and utilities (as evidenced by the 2015 detailed planning approval for the residential development of the site, 15/00308/B).
It is anticipated that the current scheme will adopt the same service arrangements as the previously approved application.
Local facilities such as schools, public transportation, shops, bars & restaurants, the beach and the local golf course are all close and comfortably comfortable walking distance of the site.
The development shall be undertaken by Forest Homes, a local family owned brownfield residential developer with many year’s experience of property development on the Isle of Man, and each new build dwelling shall be built by local tradespeople and sold with ten year latent defect warranties.
Planning designation and history
The site is brownfield and currently zoned as predominantly residential within the Area Plan for the South (2013).
The Southern Plan referred to two dwellings on the site, however there was no development brief for this site within that plan, and as such the policies of General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan are relevant to the application.
In 2015 the site was granted detailed planning approval for residential development (15/00308/B), with the site assessed against those polices of GP2. As such the principal of residential development of the site has been established.
It should be noted that part of the failure to implement the 2015 approval was the lack of economic viability of a two dwelling development of the site. The current proposal creates a far more viable scheme when placed alongside the current economic, supply chain and liquidity circumstances that the construction industry faces, whilst also optimising the use of one of the few remaining brownfield residential sites within the settlement of Pt. Erin.
The latest area plan due for adoption on the Isle of Man is the Area Plan for The East. The inquiry into the eastern plan confirmed that there has been a shift in development focus towards the optimisation of previously developed brownfield sites within sustainable locations. This was a
material consideration in the final allocation of sites and strategic reserves recommended by the Inspector.
Development of this site therefore compliments a critical conclusion from the most recent area plan and also ties into the move towards development in areas suitable for active travel.
Density
The application site is approximately 0.83 acres, on which a development of six houses equates to a density of 7.2 houses per acre, well within acceptable Isle of Man standards.
The proposed development sits comfortably within the site and as such all amenities as required by the Strategic Plan for new dwellings can be accommodated by this scheme, with each house’s footprint being a minority of its overall plot footprint (c. 20%-25%), and providing large gardens for each plot.
In terms of development intensity, the proposal is less dense than a similar brownfield scheme approved in 2020 at Annacur Lane for sixteen dwellings on a site of 1.54 acres (density 10.4 per acre), and similar to a 2018 reserved matters approval in Glen Vine for seven dwellings on a site of 1.24 acres (density 5.6 per acre).
Design
Each house has been arranged for modern living requirements, with generous living and sleeping areas, utility spaces, gardens and parking options.
Their external finishes will incorporate a mixture of pitched roofs, painted rendered and stone finishes, an architectural style which is featured around Pt. Erin and the wider Rushen area.
Particular regard has been given to the design of the gable facing the promenade side of Rowany Drive from plot 1. The proposal now features a significant improvement from the existing stone barn to the attractive western elevation of this plot (see below) which includes an element of stone, and also serves to shield much of plots 2 and 3 from public view from the road.
On review of the plans, there are six individual house designs on this site, which are more traditional in appearance than the flat roof styled dwellings approved in 2015. As the 2015 designs were deemed as within keeping with the street scene, it is reasonable to believe that this more traditional proposal would also be within keeping of the local street scene.
The existing street scene is characterised by various house types, sizes and finishes, with the existing barn and trees on site obscuring views of the golf course from Rowany Drive.
There are only two buildings with directly adjacent views of the proposed site, and there should be no material adverse effect on the residential amenity of adjoining properties or the character of the area caused by the development. The development and its landscaping will add variety and texture to the locality, and help discourage fly tipping on the site which has historically been left unkempt.
The site is privately owned and offers no public use amenity, and given the setting, any loss of green space in this location is more than offset by the immediate proximity of the Rowany Golf Course (c.100 acres), which is visible and accessible to members of the public, in contract to the application site.
The adjacent Fairways Court (see below) is both similar in height and size to the existing barn, which in turn mirrors elements of the proposed properties on plots 1, 2 and 3.
As with the approved 2015 scheme, there will be a reduce dig undertaken on site which will reduce the ridge heights of the proposed dwellings.
On the southern section of the site, the dormer bungalows on plots 4, 5 & 6 are similar in height to the neighbouring Rowany Cottage which has a single casement window that faces the subject site that is both small and partially obscured (see below).
In addition, notwithstanding the fact that there is no right to a view in Isle of Man planning legislation, there will remain a clear line of sight from this window through to the eastern boundary
of the site (between plots 4 & 5) and therefore limited if any change to the visual amenity for the resident(s) of Rowany Cottage.
Given that:
there should be no reason why these proposed houses should be any smaller in height or scale than their immediate neighbours, an observation which was made by the Planning Inspector who approved the 2015 application.
Parking and highways
Each dwelling has space for at least two vehicles to park (with spaces sized to be in compliance with the standards set out in the Manual for Manx Roads) within its curtilage as well as space for bicycles and storage of bins/recycling etc., and offers a safe access to the adopted highway with clear lines of visibility in both directions.
Highways did not object to the previous planning application, and from review of the Isle of Man Government website there is only a single parking disc zone in Pt. Erin, located on Bay View Road, and as such no identified issues with parking availability in the immediate vicinity of the site.
From visiting the site it is also clear that Rowany Court is well served by private garages.
Arbocultural impact assessment
Manx Roots have been consulted on the development, and in turn they have consulted DEFA regarding existing trees on site. An arbocultural study and impact assessment has been undertaken to accompany this planning application.
The proposed scheme would result in the loss of a number existing trees on site, however these have not been deemed of having sufficient merit to prevent the scheme, and their loss can be mitigated by the post-development tree planting of a selection of species such as mountain pine (Pinus mugo), Butan pine (Pinus wallichiana) and Austrian black pine (Pinus nigra).
This planting would be located between the plots and in or around the new properties, which should serve to soften the development’s appearance within its setting, replacing the poor quality existing trees with more suitable and higher quality species.
In addition, the previous approval shall be referenced when determining an appropriate mitigation fence to the golf course eastern boundary of the site, which would be anticipated at 8m where required.
Ecological impact assessment
An ecological impact assessment has been undertaken to compliment this application, the results of which identified no material reason that the site cannot accommodate the scheme.
As per the recommendations of this report no works to the barn or trees shall take place in bird breeding season, a bat roost survey shall be taken in the barn, no piles of soil or rubble will be left on the site for prolonged periods of time, light mitigation will be taken account of during the planning of lighting to the buildings, and bat roost boxes will be investigated as a potential ecological mitigation strategy.
Further sustainable characteristics of the site include:
Summary
The subject site is an underutilised brownfield site within a well-established and sustainable existing settlement. The site has been allocated in the latest local area plan for development, has recently received detailed approval for residential development, and no ecological constraints to development have been identified.
By allocating six dwellings on this site the requirement to build on a greenfield site elsewhere on the Island is potentially reduced, and as such the development of this and other brownfield sites should be given strong consideration and prioritisation in the residential planning process.
The proposed development will be both a high quality in design led by Ellis Brown Architects, and construction led by Forest Homes, and will provide much needed new housing stock to this part of the Island.
It should be noted that if planning approval is granted Forest Homes will immediately begin the process of building regulation approval in order to build the development as soon as practicably possible.
Forest Homes made a similar commitment during the planning committee meeting to consider the approval of 20/00069/B (Mayhill, Ramsey), which is now under construction. Three of the nine committee members noted that it was a favourable to see commitment from a developer to begin works as soon as possible, especially under the current economic circumstances, and as such this site’s immediate deliverability should also be welcomed.
Forest Homes 2016 Limited
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