DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 20/00356/D Applicant: Conrod Limited Proposal: Installation of illuminated signage Site Address: Boathouse Cafe Mooragh Park Ramsey Isle Of Man IM8 3AP Principal Planner: Mr Chris Balmer Expected Decision Level: Planning Committee Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 01.05.2020 _________________________________________________________________

Conditions and Notes for Approval

C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions C 1. The advertisement(s) hereby granted consent shall be begun before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice.

Reason: To avoid the accumulation of unimplemented advertisement consents. This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The proposed development is considered to comply with the relevant policies of the Strategic Plan - General Policies 2, 6 and 7. Plans/Drawings/Information; This approval relates to the submitted documents and drawings reference numbers 001 and 115 all received on 25th March 2020.

_______________________________________________________________ Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report

THE APPLICATION IS BEFORE THE PLANNING COMMITTEE AS IT COULD BE CONSIDERED CONTRARY TO THE DEVELOPMENT PLAN BUT RECOMMENDED FOR AN APPROVAL

1.0 SITE - 1.1 The application site is the Boathouse Café at the southern side of Mooragh Park, Ramsey. The café is adjacent to and below the level of North Shore Road, overlooking Mooragh Lake. The building is single storey, with painted render and a part hipped, part flat roof. There is a tower feature at the western corner which also features a hipped roof.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL - 2.1 The application seeks approval for the installation of signage. Two of which are illuminated by downlights. These are located on the tower section of the buildings. The remainder of the signs are not illuminated, these include outside barriers and two small signs to the entrance of the building.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 There is no planning history materially relevant to this application.

4.0 PLANNING POLICY - 4.1 The application site is in an area designated in the Ramsey Local Plan 1998 as Public Open Space. - 4.2 The Control of Advertisements Regulations 2013 make it clear that the only considerations which can be applied to applications made under them are in the interests of amenity and public safety. In the case of amenity, such things as the general characteristics of the area need to be taken into account along with the presence of any features of historic, architectural, cultural or similar interest and the public safety should consider the safety of any person using a road, railway, tramway, harbour or aerodrome including the obscuration of any traffic sign or similar. - 4.3 Due to the designation of the site and the nature of the application it is appropriate to consider the following polices of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016:

• 4.3.1 General Policy 2 states: "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:

• (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; (g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality;

• 4.3.2 General Policy 6 states: ‘Within our towns and villages, the display of external advertisements will be permitted on the site or building to which they relate provided they:

• (a) are of a high standard of design and materials and relate well to the building and site on which they are to be displayed;
• (b) are in keeping with and do not detract from the surrounding area; and
• (c) are located so as not to cause a highway safety hazard’.

• 4.3.3 General Policy 7 states: ‘Within our towns and villages, the display of external advertisements on sites or buildings other than those to which they relate will not generally be permitted’.

5.0 REPRESENTATIONS - 5.1 Ramsey Town Commissioners have no objections to the application (20.04.2020).

5.2 Head of Health and Safety comments (07.04.2020): "There are no concerns with this application in terms of its infringement/proximity to a hazardous installation, the installation has now been decommissioned. The mapping is due to be updated to remove this site from the constraints layers." - 5.3 DOI Highway Services comment (29.04.20): "The proposal is acceptable in highway terms with the proposed signage unlikely to cause a distraction. The illuminated sign should meet brightness standard on being lit by a down light. Accordingly, Highway Services DNO" (do not oppose).

6.0 ASSESSMENT - 6.1 The main issue to be considered in the assessment of this application is the impact of the proposed development upon the character and appearance of the individual property and street scene. - 6.2 It is considered that the proposed signage would not result in a harmful impact on the existing building, when considered in its context. The materials of the proposed signage that would be used and the descriptions and design of the signage would relate well to the buildings use as a cafe.

6.4 The installation of the proposed signage is judged to be in keeping with the surrounding area and would therefore not result in a harmful impact on the character of Mooragh Park/North Shore Road. The siting of the proposed signage is not deemed to cause a highway safety hazard. - 6.5 Overall, it is concluded that the planning application is in accordance with General Policies

• 2, 6 and 7 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016.

7.0 CONCLUSION - 7.1 On the basis that the proposed development is considered to comply with the relevant policies of the Strategic Plan, a recommendation of approval is made.

8.0 INTERESTED PERSON STATUS - 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 2013 (As Amended), the following persons are automatically interested persons:

• • The applicant, or if there is one, the applicant’s agent;
• • Any Government Department that has made written submissions relating to planning considerations with respect to the application that the Department considers material;
• • The local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated.
• • the Highways, Ports and Railways divisions of the Department of Infrastructure.

8.2 The decision maker must determine:

• • whether any other comments from Government Departments (other than those explicitly listed above) are material; and
• • whether there are other persons to those listed above who should be given Interested Person Status.

I confirm that this decision has been made by the Planning Committee in accordance with the authority afforded to it under the appropriate delegated authority.

Decision Made : …Permitted……….... Committee Meeting Date:…18.05.2020

Signed :………S BUTLER…….. Presenting Officer

Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason was required (included as supplemental paragraph to the officerreport).

Signatory to delete as appropriate YES/NO See below

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 onlineservices/customers and archive records.