Agenda item

The Committee considered a report (Agenda Item 4(4)) concerning Planning Application 16/01846/OUTMAJ in respect of a residential development comprising the erection of 25 dwellings with associated access, parking and landscaping works. Matters to be considered: Access.

Bob Dray, Planning Officer, introduced the report and explained that as with the previous agenda item, this application required a decision from the Committee on the representations to be made at the planning appeal for this application and not to determine the application. The appeal had been lodged by the applicant on the grounds of non-determination of the planning application.

The Planning Officer went on to explain that the proposed affordable housing provision on this site was in accordance with the Council’s Core Strategy Policy CS6, with 40% of all dwellings on site being socially rented affordable housing. This equated to ten units.

Officers’ recommendation was that representations should be made at appeal that planning permission should be granted subject to conditions and planning obligations.

In accordance with the Council’s Constitution, Mr David Wood, Parish Council representative, addressed the Committee on this application.

Mr Wood in addressing the Committee raised the following points:

·                    Theale Parish Council objected to this application. He questioned this proposal for 25 dwellings as this exceeded the planning policy allocation of 15 dwellings, and an extant permission was already in place for seven dwellings.

·                    Access to the anglers’ car park was another cause for concern. This was also used by pedestrians and it was an unsuitable road for increased traffic.

·                    Approval of the application would have a negative impact on local amenities, i.e. put additional pressure on the GP surgery.

·                    The site should be retained as green space.

·                    The lake was a safety concern that needed to be highlighted.

Mr Malcolm McPhail, applicant/agent, while not listed to speak, requested to do so. He stated that he had made this request within the required timeframe. However, Officers had no record of this at the meeting.

Councillor Graham Bridgman proposed suspension of standing orders to allow Mr McPhail to address the Committee. This was seconded by Councillor Emma Webster.

Members voted in favour of suspending standing orders.

Mr McPhail in addressing the Committee raised the following points:

·                     In reference to the comments made by the Parish Council, North Lakeside was, at an earlier stage, to be retained as a landscape buffer but this legal requirement had been removed. This was a relatively small area and the potential for a landscape buffer was limited. Open space requirements formed part of the larger 325 dwelling development.

·                     No policy objections had been raised to residential development in the Planning Officer’s report. No highway objections had been raised.

·                     An extant permission was also in place for this site, but this would be replaced by this planning application (if approved) alongside the 325 dwelling development.

·                     Mr McPhail made it clear that it was the intention, post obtaining planning consent, to sell the site to a third party developer.

·                     As stated in the report, education mitigation for this scheme would be through CIL.

·                     The application was in compliance with the Council’s planning policy for affordable housing.

·                     Contamination was not a factor on this site.

·                     Mr McPhail was pleased to note the recommendation that representations be made at appeal for planning permission to be granted subject to conditions and provision of affordable housing. He hoped this would be supported by the Committee.

Councillor Alan Law noted that access was a matter for consideration with this application. He queried whether access to the anglers’ car park via The Green would be separate from the access to the additional car park shown within the plans. Mr McPhail clarified that access to the anglers’ car park would continue to be via the unadopted road coming off The Green. A separate access would be in place for the additional car park.

Councillor Bridgman sought to clarify whether the combination of this application and the 325 dwelling application was comparable, in terms of density, to the extant permission for 350 dwellings. Mr McPhail confirmed this was the case, but with the addition of affordable housing.

Standing orders were reinstated.

Councillor Mollie Lock read out a statement on behalf of Councillor Alan Macro, Ward Member for Theale, who had given his apologies for the meeting:

·                     The proposed access to the anglers’ car park would provide a short cut for pedestrians from the proposed development to access The Green, Theale Green Secondary School and Theale Library. It would also be used as an access to the lake by non-residents. This would be to the detriment of the amenity of residents of housing alongside this unadopted lane.

·                     The lane had a rural appearance and the dwellings within it were mainly bungalows or 1.5 storey houses. The proposal sited two storey flats on the other side of this lane. These would be incongruous and out of character with the existing dwellings.

The Planning Officer then responded to the point made by the Parish Council representative in relation to a planning policy allocation of 15 dwellings on this site. This number had been within the emerging Housing Site Allocations Development Plan Document (HSA DPD) and this proposed housing allocation was informed by the advice of the Council’s landscape consultant to have landscape buffers in place. However, the Planning Inspector’s appeal decision for St Ives Close conflicted with this point which resulted in this proposed allocation being removed from the HSA DPD, the application site being placed within the proposed settlement boundary and thereby the principle of residential development would be regarded as acceptable.

This remained a matter of concern for the landscape consultant, but the Planning Officer advised that harm would be limited and therefore landscape objections were outweighed by the planning benefits of the proposal.

Turning to the matter of the access to the anglers’ car park, the Planning Officer confirmed that this was as shown in the plans and could be used by pedestrians and cyclists. However, this was a positive point in some aspects from a planning perspective in providing alternative routes for pedestrians and a permeable design. He did not feel, based on its location, that this would be a particular concern when considering disturbance to residents.

Councillor Law queried whether restricted vehicular access to the anglers’ car park should be a condition of approval. Officers confirmed that this could be subject to a condition.

Councillor Metcalfe made reference to the permission for seven dwellings at St Ives Close and queried whether the footpath was considered as part of that application. The Planning Officer commented that while the footpath was shown within plans it did not form part of the considerations of that application.

Councillor Pamela Bale referred to the point made as part of the previous agenda item that the lake would be maintained by a management company. She noted, from paragraph 5.14.1 of the report, that provision and transfer of open space (with commuted sum) would need to be secured through a planning obligation and queried whether this applied to the larger application. The Planning Officer explained that inclusion of the lake in the public open space was considered at the previous appeal for the full Lakeside site. While the open space remained a point for reserved matters, there was a requirement on the developer to provide open space due to the number of dwellings proposed and the Council’s position was therefore robust on this matter.

Councillor Bridgman agreed with the suggestion that vehicular access to the anglers’ car park should be restricted via a coded, gated access which would block any other access.

Councillor Bridgman then commented that he could see the merits of this application and felt there were no planning objections on which permission could be refused. He therefore proposed to accept Officers’ recommendation to make representations at appeal that planning permission should be granted subject to conditions and planning obligations. This was seconded by Councillor Webster.

Councillor Law added his support to the proposal. He was pleased with the affordable housing provision.

Sarah Clarke sought to confirm whether Members wanted to add to the proposal a request to negotiate a condition to restrict vehicular access to the anglers’ car park via a coded gate to anglers only. Councillors Bridgman (proposer) and Webster (seconder) were content with this addition.

RESOLVED that the Head of Planning and Countryside be authorised to make representations at appeal that planning permission should be granted subject to conditions and planning obligations to secure the following:

1.            The provision of on-site affordable housing comprising ten units of affordable housing.

2.            The provision and transfer to the Council (with commuted sum) of public open space.

3.            The addition of a condition to restrict vehicular access to the anglers’ car park at the end of The Green to anglers only.

To authorise the Head of Planning and Countryside to enter into a legal agreement under Section 106 of the Town and Country Act 1990 to secure the above Heads of Terms.