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PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Application No. : 18/00962/B Applicant : Mr Paul Rodgers Proposal : Alterations, installation of replacement windows and creation of rear garage with roof terrace above Site Address : 16 Derby Road Douglas Isle of Man IM2 3ET

Planning Officer: Mr Nick Salt Photo Taken : 18.10.2018 Site Visit : 18.10.2018 Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation

Recommendation

Recommended Decision:

Permitted Date of Recommendation: 18.10.2018 __

Conditions and Notes for Approval

C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions

C 1. The development hereby approved shall be begun before the expiration of four years from the date of this decision notice.

Reason: To comply with article 14 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No2) Order 2013 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

C 2. All replacement windows shall match those of the existing building in respect of type, size, pattern and colour.

Reason: In the interests of the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area.

C 3. The proposed 2m privacy screening on the roof terrace shall be glazed with obscure glass to Pilkington Level 5 or equivalent and installed prior to the use of the roof terrace then permanently retained as such.

Reason: To safeguard the amenities of adjoining occupiers from overlooking and loss of privacy.

Plans/Drawings/Information:

This permission relates to the following plans and drawings, date stamped received on 12th September 2018:

o Colin's Sash Windows Brochure o 177-01 - Site Location Plan, Existing elevations and plans, proposed elevations and plans, photographs

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Interested Person Status - Additional Persons

NONE __

Officer’s Report

1.0 SITE 1.1 The proposal site in this application is the residential curtilage of 16 Derby Road, Douglas. The site is part of a terraced row of 3 and 4 storey dwellings within a densely residential area of the town. The dwelling itself is the end terrace at the junction of Derby Road and Falcon Street Lane (to the east of the property). 1.2 The site is situated within the Windsor Road Conservation Area. 1.3 The site dwelling at is traditional mixed yellow and red brick at the front with a distinctive 'tower/ feature projecting out from the front of the main body of the building. To the rear and side elevations, the building is finished in white painted render, with white painted sliding sash windows at the front and more contemporary openings at the rear and side elevations. 1.4 The site features a small backyard with exterior metal stairs leading to fire escapes. There is a wall bounding this and a small access lane to the rear of the site curtilage. At present, there are no off-street parking facilities.

2.0 PROPOSAL 2.1 Proposed is the creation of a garage with a roof terrace above, over the existing back yard of the property. A new opening is proposed from the utility room on the 1st floor through to the terrace and the yard back wall is to be opened up to create a garage door. The current access to the yard from the side is to be blocked up. 2.2 In order to accommodate the proposal, a rear shed would be removed, and the terrace would feature a 2 metre high privacy screen using opaque glass or similar material. 2.3 It is also proposed that a number of windows on the elevations of the property are to be replaced with uPVC sliding sash windows.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY 3.1 There is no previous planning history which is deemed materially relevant to this application.

4.0 PLANNING POLICY 4.1 The site falls within the area of the Douglas Local Plan 1998 and is zoned under this plan as being in an area of 'Predominantly Residential Use' (Map 2, South). 4.2 For this application, it is important to consider the following policy contained within the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016: 4.3 General Policy 2: Development which is in accordance with the land-use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan and with other policies of this Strategic Plan will normally be permitted, provided that the development: (a) is in accordance with the design brief in the Area Plan where there is such a brief; (b) respects the site and surroundings in terms of the siting, layout, scale, form, design and landscaping of buildings and the spaces around them; (c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape; (d) does not adversely affect the protected wildlife or locally important habitats on the site or adjacent land, including water courses; (e) does not affect adversely public views of the sea; (f) incorporates where possible existing topography and landscape features, particularly trees and sod banks; (g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality;

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(h) provides satisfactory amenity standards in itself, including where appropriate safe and convenient access for all highway users, together with adequate parking, servicing and manoeuvring space; (i) does not have an unacceptable effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways; (j) can be provided with all necessary services; (k) does not prejudice the use or development of adjoining land in accordance with the appropriate Area Plan; (l) is not on contaminated land or subject to unreasonable risk of erosion or flooding; (m) takes account of community and personal safety and security in the design of buildings and the spaces around them; and (n) is designed having due regard to best practice in reducing energy consumption.

4.4 As the site falls within a conservation area, it is important to have regard to Environment Policy 35: "Within Conservation Areas, the Department will permit only development which would preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Area, and will ensure that the special features contributing to the character and quality are protected against inappropriate development."

4.5 Finally, it is important to account for Planning Circular 1/98 - The Alteration and Replacement of Windows, which states in Policy 6; "If the original windows are in place they should preferably be repaired. If repair is impracticable, replacement windows which would be readily visible from a public thoroughfare must have the same method of opening as the originals. Whatever the material used in their construction, the windows must have the same pattern and section of glazing bars and the same frame sections as the original windows. Windows not readily visible from a public thoroughfare must have the same or similar pattern of glazing bars as the originals, but not necessarily the original method of opening, whatever the material used in the construction."

5.0 REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 Douglas Corporation have no objection to the proposal (12.10.18). 5.2 Highways Services have no highways interest in the application (12.10.18).

6.0 ASSESSMENT 6.1 This application is assessed against the following criteria, having regard to the aforementioned policies: o Effect on Neighbours and Public Amenity o Parking Provision and Highway Safety o Character and Appearance of the site and surrounding area

6.2 Effect on Neighbours 6.2.1 The main areas for consideration when assessing this application and potential effect on neighbour amenity are; risk of overlooking onto or into neighbours property, and risk of overshadowing. 6.2.2 With regard to overlooking, as a rule of thumb, development proposed within 20 metres of a neighbouring property is generally considered to pose a risk. In this case, No.18 Derby Road is adjoined to the site, and therefore most likely to experience overlooking and loss of privacy. The presence of the terrace would generally be unacceptable as it looks into No.18, however, the proposal includes a 2m high opaque screening which would greatly mitigate the issue. This screening, and proposed 1.1m fencing at the Flacon Street Lane side of the property, also limits overlooking impact satisfactorily. No.18 extends further back towards the access lane to the rear of the properties and there is no open space large enough to be used for leisure purposes. If anything, at present, there is some degree of overlooking from No.18 into No.16, and the proposed privacy screening would equally benefit the applicant site. 6.2.3 Given the narrow nature of the yard to the rear of No.18, and the fact that it would sit almost a storey below the proposed terrace, overlooking into the yard would not be

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unacceptable. Loss of privacy and from the first floor windows of No.18 would also be minimal if the screening is correctly implemented. 6.2.3 With regard to 21 Falcon Street, the rear of this property features a garage which would prevent any direct overlooking from the terrace of the site. 6.2.4 Overshadowing in unlikely to be greatly increase by the proposal. The surrounds of the terrace may reduce some level of light the mornings. There are a number of medium height buildings in a compact area which is likely to limit natural light at present, the proposal, given its nature, is unlikely to unacceptably increase this.

6.3 Parking Provision and Highway Safety 6.3.1 The existing arrangement at the site does not provide any off-street parking for residents, furthering the demand for on-street parking and congesting the nearby streets. The propose car port/garage area to provide parking is welcome in reducing reliance on on-street parking. In this respect, the proposal complies with GP2 (h). 6.3.2 Additionally, the proposed car port would include a new garage door accessible from the lane at the rear of the property. This lane is not a thoroughfare and is not heavily used by traffic, and there is therefore no obvious risk to highway safety of either the residents or neighbouring residents.

6.4 Character and Appearance of the site and surrounding area 6.4.1 The works to the rear of the property including the car port and garage door, as well as the proposed terrace area, would not be readily visible from the main thoroughfares of Derby Road and Falcon Street and their potential impact on the character and appearance of the area. The proposed 2m screening using opaque glass or similar material, is a contemporary feature which would often look out of place in conservation areas. In this case, the side elevation of the building already contains contemporary features such as the existing bay window and a look which contrasts somewhat with the front of the property and general street scene. These additional features would therefore not contrast greatly in and of themselves. 6.4.2 With regard to the window replacements, it is important, particularly at the front elevation of the dwelling, to preserve its appearance. This is particularly important given the prominence and visual impact of the tower feature on the building. The proposed windows would maintain the sash opening and design and are of the same colour as the existing. Their visual impact would therefore be very limited. The proposal would not damage the character of the Windsor Road Conservation Area It is not likely that any part of the proposal would be in conflict with Planning Circular 1-98, General Policy 2 or Environment Policy 35.

7.0 CONCLUSION 7.1 In summary, both the window replacement, and the rear alterations to the property are not likely to harm the character and appearance of the area or the amenity of neighbours insomuch as to warrant a reason for refusal. The addition of an off-street parking area would also be welcome and in compliance with GP2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016. For these reasons, the proposal is acceptable and recommended for approval.

8.0 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:

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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. __

I can confirm that this decision has been made by the Head of Development Management in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation.

Decision Made : Permitted

Date : 22.10.2018

Determining officer

Signed : S BUTLER

Stephen Butler

Head of Development Management

Customer note

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.