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The application site comprises of land within the rural part of Onchan that is accessed off Whitebridge Road. The site contains Ballakaighen Farm, which is now primarily in leisure use, and is commonly referred to as 'Laserblast'.
The planning application seeks approval for the change of use of two of the fields contained within the application site from agricultural to recreational use and the siting of a portabcabin.
The application site has been the subject of a number of previous planning applications, the following of which are considered to be material to the assessment of the current planning application.
Planning application 03/00729/C sought approval for the change of use of agricultural land and barn for paintball games and indoor laser games at Ballakaighen Farm, Whitebridge Road, Onchan. This previous planning application was initially considered and approved on the 21st November 2003, with the initial approval decision notice issued on the 28th November 2003.
Planning application 05/00326/B sought approval for the conversion of barns to an activity centre with car parking, drive widening and entrance alterations at Ballakaighen Farm, Whitebridge Road, Onchan. This previous planning application was initially considered and approved on the 24th June 2005, with the initial approval decision notice issued on the 6th July 2005.
Planning application 06/00866/B sought approval for alterations to existing sludge pit and erection of a building to incorporate leisure facilities at Ballakaighen Farm, Whitebridge Road, Onchan. This previous planning application was considered and refused on the 7th February 2007, with the refusal decision notice issued on the 8th February 2007. A subsequent appeal against the refusal was dismissed by the Minister, in accordance with the recommendation of the appointed Planning Inspector, with the appeal refusal decision issued on the 24th
July 2007. A copy of the decision notice and appeal decision for this previous planning application has been placed on the file for the current planning application.
Planning application 08/00454/B sought approval for the extension of the existing car park at Ballakaighen Farm, Whitebridge Road, Onchan. This previous planning application was considered and approved on the 8th July 2008, with the approval decision notice issued on the 15th July 2008.
Planning application 08/01134/B seeks approval for the erection of a marquee, toilet blocks and creation of decking at Ballakaighen Farm, Whitebridge Road, Onchan. This planning application is also on the agenda for this meeting of the Committee.
Onchan District Commissioners have no objection to the planning application. The Department of Transport Highways Division oppose the planning application on the grounds that they consider there to be insufficient information to evaluate the application, as no detailed information on the proposed usage is provided.
The owner and/or occupant of Sunnyside, which is located directly opposite the entrance to the application site, objects to the planning application. The grounds for their objection can be summarised as concern regarding the visual appearance of the portacabin, noise disturbance arising from the use of the fields and the impact on their amenity arising from the overall increase in activity. They consider that the use is contrary to the green appearance of the area and are concerned about the continued expansion of the site.
The owner and/or occupant of Seacliffe, which is located in Braddan, express an interest in the planning application.
In terms of land use planning, the application site is located within a wider area of land that is designated as open space under the Onchan Local Plan Order 2000. There are no policies within Planning Circular 1/2000, which constitutes the written statement to be read in conjunction with the local plan, that are considered specifically material to the assessment of the planning application.
In terms of strategic planning policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 contains two policies that are considered specifically material to the assessment of the planning application: General Policy 3 states: "Development will not be permitted outside of those areas which are zoned for development on the appropriate Area Plan with the exception of:
Environment Policy 1 states: "The countryside and its ecology will be protected for its own sake. For the purposes of this policy, the countryside comprises all land which is outside the settlements defined in Appendix 3 at A.3.6 or which is not designated for future development on an Area Plan. Development which would adversely affect the countryside will not be permitted unless there is an over-riding national need in land use planning terms which outweighs the requirement to protect these areas and for which there is no reasonable and acceptable alternative."
The planning application seeks approval for the change of use of two fields from agricultural to recreational use and the positioning of a portacabin. The planning application submission comprises of a completed application form, location plan, site plans and portacabin details.
In terms of the assessment of the planning application there are two elements to consider. Firstly, acceptability of the proposed change of use and, secondly, the impact of the proposed siting of the portacabin.
In respect of the acceptability of the proposed change of use the planning application does not precisely define what the intended use of the two fields would be. Rather it states that "activities being considered are, but are not limited to, a laser clay pigeon shooting range and a children's go-kart track. These would be applied if a change of use was granted." This absence of detail, as with previous planning applications for proposals at Ballakaighen Farm, makes full and proper assessment difficult. Without knowing in what recreational manner the fields would be used it is difficult to assess the impact and acceptability.
However, as there are clear planning policy implications to the change of use it is considered possible to assessment the proposal. The two fields are not designated for the proposed use and are part of the overall wider countryside, which is protected by land use designation under the Onchan Local Plan and planning policy contained within the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007. The proposed change of use is contrary to that and therefore unacceptable. Furthermore, the proposed recreational use of the fields has the potential to be detrimental to public and private amenity. For example, it is reasonable to conclude that the operation of go-karts on the fields has the potential cause noise disturbance within the area and potentially detrimentally affect the residential amenity of Sunnyside and Ballakaighen House. It is concluded that the proposed change is also unacceptable due to the potential recreational use.
In respect of the impact of the proposed siting of the portacabin it considered that such type of building is somewhat unsightly, it being a type of building usually more associated to building sites. The proposed building is located within open countryside and therefore represents encroachment. However, due to its proposed siting adjacent to the existing farm group it could be argued that the impact of the building will be limited. It is assumed, although the planning application does not state, that the portacabin is intended to be used in association with the proposed recreational use of the two fields. It follows that if the proposed change of use is not acceptable then the proposed portacabin is not required.
It is recommended that the planning application be refused.
It is considered that the following parties that made representations to the planning application meet the criteria of Government Circular 1/06 and should be afforded interested party status: Onchan District Commissioners; The Department of Transport Highways Division; and The owner and/or occupant of Sunnyside. It is considered that the following parties that made representations to the planning application do not meet the criteria of Government Circular 1/06 and should not be afforded interested party status: The owner and/or occupant of Seacliffe.
Recommended Decision: Refused Date of Recommendation: Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal 0 : Notes attached to refusals R 1 . The proposed change of use of the two fields to recreational is contrary to the land use designation of the land under the Onchan Local Plan Order 2000. Such change of use represents an unwarranted use within the
countryside, contrary to the provisions of Environment Policy 1 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007. Whilst information regarding the intended use of the two fields is limited within the planning application it is concluded that the indicated uses, and in particular go-karting, have the potential to cause detrimental harm to the amenity of the surrounding area and the residential amenity of Sunnyside and Ballakaighen House.
R 2. The siting of the portcabin represents the erection of a new built development in the countryside. Such development is contrary to the presumption against development in the countryside and the provisions of General Policy 3 and Environment Policy 1 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007.
Decision Made : Committee Meeting Date :
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