108754

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                                      18/00647/B                                     Page  1  of  4

PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Application No. : 18/00647/B Applicant : David Gorman Proposal : Installation of two replacement silos, a replacement weighing system unit, and erection of sheds to provide worker welfare facilities (retrospective) Site Address : The Yard Stoney Mountain Road Foxdale Isle Of Man

Principal Planner: Miss S E Corlett Photo Taken : 11.07.2018 Site Visit : 11.07.2018 Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation

Recommendation

Recommended Decision:

Permitted Date of Recommendation: 30.07.2018 __

Conditions and Notes for Approval

C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions

C 1. Within one month of the date of this notice as it becomes final, the silos must be painted dark green, sample of which colour must be approved by the Department prior to its application.

Reason: to ensure that the silos have as reduced an impact in the landscape as is possible.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

This decision relates to the installation of two silos and associated plant as shown in the applicant's photograph and Site Location plan received on 20th June, 2018 and as shown in the Department's photographs on the file, dates 11th July, 2018.

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Interested Person Status - Additional Persons

none __

Officer’s Report

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                                      18/00647/B                                     Page  2  of  4

THE SITE AND ITS PLANNING CONTEXT 1.1 The site is an area of land which lies to the south of Stoney Mountain Road within an area which is used for industrial purposes in the form of a concrete mixing plant, a paving operation and waste management facility (see below Planning History). The site has its access down a single vehicle width lane from Stoney Mountain Road, past a residential property, Athen Rye, and an industrial unit on the western side of the lane. The site accommodates a number of industrial structures and equipment commensurate with the operation of a concrete processing plant.

1.2 The plant and operation were first approved in 00/01442/C with a later application in 2000 (00/02484/B) for the installation of a silo (although the description of the development refers to "bulk storage site", not "silo") and 08/00321/B saw the introduction of the large storage building on site.

THE PROPOSAL 2.1 Recently, some of the plant and the silo have been replaced and planning approval is now sought for these new structures. The structures include two silos and a large skip-shaped plant which contains and controls the aggregate and sand to be mixed with the cement powder which is stored in the silos when the cement is required to be mixed and dropped into the waiting concrete mixing transport truck. The new plant is of a similar size to what it replaced. All of the proposed plant is in situ.

2.2 The applicant has indicated that he will colour the silos dark green to match the conifers in the backdrop before the plant is in operation, indicating that it would be done within one month.

2.3 This application has been prepared with discussion with the Planning Enforcement Team who were alerted to the construction of the new silos and equipment by a third party. It is understood that the applicant has discussed the proposal with those in the vicinity of the site.

PLANNING POLICY 3.1 The site, and surrounding area which is used for a variety of industrial purposes, is not designated for any particular purpose on the Area Plan for the South (2013). Development is generally discouraged here under GP3 and EP 1 of the Strategic Plan. However, the operations on this site and that immediately to the north (the waste recycling) are lawful through planning approvals.

3.2 The correct approach in this case is, therefore, an assumption that development which is reasonably required to operate the facility which has approval, should be acceptable provided that this does not have an undue impact on the environment and bearing in mind that the site is located in the countryside with a rural backdrop and surroundings.

PLANNING HISTORY 4.1 The waste handling facility immediately to the north was approved under 01/01784/C. The pavior business to the north west has no planning approval but may well be immune from the serving of an enforcement notice through the passage of time. The levelling and recycling operations to the south east have time-constrained approval under 13/90995/B and 13/90996/B.

4.2 00/02484/B proposed the silo to be "no higher than 30ft and no wider than 9ft" and the colour of the silo was to be "green". It was this that led the applicant to believe that no permission was required for the introduction of replacement silos which also met with these descriptions. It is his belief that the silos comply with these requirements although they are established at a higher level, resulting in the silos on site appearing higher than were the previous ones.

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                                      18/00647/B                                     Page  3  of  4

REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 Malew Parish Commissioners have no objection (04.07.18).

5.2 Highway Services indicate that they have no highway interest (24.07.18).

ASSESSMENT 6.1 The information provided is limited and there are no direct or precise comparisons between what existed previously and what is now on site. Aerial and older photographs seem to indicate that the new silos are more prominent (although they have yet to be coloured) and appear taller, although it is difficult to correlate the Google Streetview images which were taken at a higher level than the officer's photographs, giving a reduced impact.

6.2 When the silos are painted dark green, their impact will be much reduced to the extent that they will not have an adverse impact on the environment, given that the site has a lawful use through planning approval, for cement storage and mixing. The replacement plant has no significant environmental impact and it is relevant that there are no objections from local residents, businesses or the local authority.

CONCLUSION 7.1 The application is supported.

INTERESTED PERSON STATUS 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013 Article 6(4), the following persons are automatically interested persons: (a) The applicant, or if there is one, the applicant's agent; (b) The owner and the occupier of any land that is the subject of the application or any other person in whose interest the land becomes vested; (c) Any Government Department that has made written submissions relating to planning considerations with respect to the application that the Department considers material (d) Highway Services Division of Department of Infrastructure and (e) The local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated.

8.2 The decision maker must determine: o whether any other comments from Government Departments (other than the Department of Infrastructure Highway Services Division) are material; and o whether there are other persons to those listed in Article 6(4) who should be given Interested Person Status.

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I can confirm that this decision has been made by a Principal Planner in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation.

Decision Made : Permitted

Date: 30.07.2018

Determining officer

Signed : C BALMER

Chris Balmer

Principal Planner

Customer note

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This copy of the officer report reflects the content of the file copy and has been produced in this form for the benefit of our online services/customers and archive records.