24 January 2005 · Committee
The Tide, 22, Parliament Street, Ramsey, Isle Of Man, IM8 1ap
The application proposed constructing first and second floors above an existing ground-floor property to create two new residential apartments. The Ramsey Local Plan encourages the use of existing upper-floor space above shops for residential purposes, and parking relaxations have been accepted in some cases where upper floors are being converted. However, this proposal was not a conversion of existing space but the creation of entirely new floors where none currently exist. The officer considered that this distinction was material: adding new residential floorspace without any car parking provision would place undue stress on parking in the area and did not accord with the Local Plan policy. The application was also noted to be limited in detail, requiring an amendment to its description during the process. The Planning Committee, aligning with the officer's recommendation, refused the application.
The proposal involved building new upper floors rather than converting existing space, which meant the parking relaxations available for upper-floor conversions did not apply. No car parking was provided for the two proposed apartments, placing undue stress on local parking and failing to accord with Ramsey Local Plan policy. The Planning Committee refused the application on this basis.
policy that encourages the use of upper floor space above shops for residential purposes
creation of additional space where there is no current space does not accord with the policy
