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The application site comprises part of a field between the Old Castletown Road and the Steam Railway. To the west would be sited Unit 5 of the proposed estate and to the east, Unit 7 of the proposed estate. There are residential properties on the opposite side of the Old Castletown Road.
This application is seeking planning permission for the erection of an industrial storage building, which is to be sub-divided into twelve units. The building will be 36.619m in length and 24.712m in width. The height of the building will be 6.259m to the ridge. The building will provide 828 square metres of floor space for industrial/storage purposes. 31 car parking spaces are to be provided within the site.
Within the adopted Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007, the following policies are considered to be relevant in the determination of this application: General Policy 3, Environment Policy 1 and 22, Transport Policy 1, 3, 4 and 7.
The site is zoned as part of an Area of Open Space or Woodland in the Douglas Local Plan 1998.
The following previous applications are considered relevant in the consideration of this application:
06/02210/B - Erection of an industrial storage building sub-divided into six units, Unit 7 White Hoe Industrial Estate – pending
06/01490/B – Construction of an industrial unit and associated parking with access road, to be used as a vehicle repair workshop and auto electrical centre, Unit 5 White Hoe Industrial Estate – currently on hold at appeal.
04/02473/A - Approval in principle for the erection of light industrial units – granted at appeal on 30th September 2007. On the 9th October 2007, the Director of Planning and Building Control agreed to extend the duration of the planning consent to the 30th September 2009.
Condition 2 of the approval stated that "The details of landscaping submitted with the Reserved Matters application must include tree and shrub planting (predominantly tree planting to cover approximately 20% of the site (excluding the existing Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry’s planting), so disposed as to mitigate the visual impact of the proposed units as viewed from the highway, the railway, and The Nunnery Estate".
A planning application, submitted in 2001, for approval in principle for industrial/warehousing development was refused. Temporary use as a site compound in connection with the Island’s sewage disposal scheme (IRIS) was approved until 2004.
The Highways Division of the Department of Transport, prior to the submitted amendments, had requested that the application be deferred as the development of the site by individual units does not permit a full assessment of the traffic and transportation requirements. A Transport Assessment is required for the whole site to determine whether or not a right turning lane off the A5 Castletown Road is required to serve the whole industrial estate. The Division have not yet commented on the amended plans.
Douglas Corporation has not objected to the application. Standard comments have been received from the Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service and the Isle of Man Water Authority. The Drainage Department of Douglas Corporation has no objection in principle to the application subject to standard comments.
In 2004, an application (04/02473/A) for an approval in principle for the erection of light industrial units was submitted. This was granted at appeal on 30th September 2005. This current application
is not a reserved matters application to the original approval in principle but is a separate full detailed application to develop this part of the field in line with the proposed estate layout (PA07/01212/B) which is pending consideration. The principle of developing the site for an industrial storage building must therefore be considered.
The application site is located within an Area of Open Space or Woodland in the Douglas Local Plan 1998. The proposed development would be incompatible with the land use zoning within the Douglas Local Plan. However, the applicant has recently sought to extend the time period of the approval in principle. This was agreed by the Director of Planning and Building Control and the permission will now expire on 30th September 2009. Since an extant permission exists it is considered that the principle of developing the site for an industrial storage building to be acceptable.
In respect of the visual amenities of the locality, the proposed would not look out of character within an industrial estate. The building is single storey in height and will be set approximately 5.8m below road level. There is an existing buffer zone between the application site and the public highway of the Old Castletown Road, which were planted by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. However, the building will still be visible from the public highway and it is considered that additional tree planting is required between the building and the existing tree buffer zone to further limit the visual impact of the proposal. This planting would need to be carried out in accordance with the tree planting strategy submitted as part of planning application 07/01212 for the estate layout.
In terms of the total parking provision for the estate, it is proposed to provide 31 car parking spaces to serve the development. The building will provide 828 square metres of floor space for industrial storage purposes. Using the light industrial car parking standards, as a worst case scenario, the applicant would need to provide 28 spaces. The number of parking spaces being proposed would exceed the requirement by 3 spaces and therefore the parking provision is considered to be acceptable and would serve the requirements of the development.
In terms of highway safety, the access road and turning facility would be constructed in accordance with the proposed estate layout under planning application 07/01212. A condition restricting the occupation of the building until the access road/turning facility has been constructed would ensure the development can be accessed safely.
It is recommended that planning permission be granted subject to conditions in the attached schedule.
The Department of Transport and the local authority are, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2005, paragraph 6 (5) (c) and (d), considered "interested persons" and as such should be afforded party status.
Whilst the Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service and the Isle of Man Water Authority represents a statutory authority, the points raised in correspondence relate to Building Control matters and not planning and as such should not be afforded party status in this instance.
In summary, it is considered that the following parties, who submitted comments, accord with the requirements of Planning Circular 1/06 and are therefore, afforded interested party status:
Accordingly the following parties are not afforded interested party status:
Recommended Decision: Permitted
Date of Recommendation: 04.12.2007
C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal
C 1. The development hereby permitted shall commence before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice.
C 2. This permission relates to the erection of an industrial storage building sub-divided into twelve units as shown in drawing numbers 1247-01 Rev B date stamped 19th December 2006, 1247-26 date stamped 28th November 2007, 1247-16 Rev B date stamped 25th October 2007.
C 3. The proposed units may be used only for light industrial and storage/distribution purposes.
C 4. The units hereby permitted shall not be occupied until the car parking and manoeuvring areas have been provided in accordance with the approved plans, and those area shall thereafter be kept available at all times for their respective purposes.
C 5. The units hereby permitted shall not be occupied until the estate access road and turning facility under planning permission 07/01212/B for the creation of an industrial estate layout granted on [insert issue date of decision notice] has been constructed.
C 6. All planting shall be carried out in accordance with the approved plans and the tree planning strategy, attached to planning permission 07/01212/B for the creation of an industrial estate layout granted on [insert date of decision notice], in the first planting and seeding seasons following the completion of the building.
Furthermore, additional tree planting must take place in the following area:
C 7. There must be no discharge of surface water to the main foul sewer.
N 1.
The applicant is advised that a petrol interceptor for the car park drainage will be required so as to comply with the requirements of the Douglas Corporation Drainage Department.
It should be noted that it is an offence under Manx legislation to permit the discharge of polluting or harmful matter to any public sewers or watercourses. Appropriate measures must be taken by the developer/occupier of the premises to ensure compliance with the legislation.
N 2. For single connections to a water main (i.e. a single dwelling) the applicant should contact Isle of Man Water Authority Customer Services, telephone 695949.
N 3. The applicant is advised to consult with the Fire Safety Department regarding the fire safety measures for the development.
Decision Made : Granted Committee Meeting Date : 20/12/97
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