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20/01099/B Page 1 of 4
PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Application No. : 20/01099/B Applicant : Robert & Michelle Lord Proposal : Alterations and erection of extension to rear of dwelling Site Address : 1 Woodbourne Villas Alexander Drive Douglas Isle Of Man IM2 3QG
Planning Officer: Mr Peiran Shen Photo Taken : 27.10.2020 Site Visit : 27.10.2020 Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation
Recommendation
Recommended Decision:
Permitted Date of Recommendation: 18.11.2020 __
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 26 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.
N 1. No approval is hereby granted or implied to the undertaking of development on, under or over land which is not in the applicant's ownership or control.
This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. This application is considered to comply with General Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan and the Residential Design Guide.
Plans/Drawings/Information; This approval relates to the submitted documents, drawing no. 237/001, 237/010, 237/020 date stamped as having been received on 21st September 2020. __
Interested Person Status - Additional Persons
None __
Officer’s Report
1.0 THE SITE
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1.1 The application site is the residential curtilage of 1 Woodbourne Villas, Alexander Drive, Douglas, a two-storey end-of-terrace dwelling located on the north of Alexander Drive, close to its south junctions with Queen's Terrace.
1.2 The house has a pitched roof. It also has a pitched gable on the front. There is a mono- pitched two-storey extension on the rear of the main dwelling to the west elevation. There is another mon-pitched roof extension on the rear of the two-story rear extension.
1.3 The rear of the property is surrounded by a cream-coloured boundary wall. There is also a flat roof single-garage on the north boundary of the property.
2.0 THE PROPOSAL 2.1 The proposed work is the demolition of existing rear single-storey extension and the erection of a flat roof single-storey rear extension.
2.2 The proposed single-storey extension can be summarised as the following: o approx. 6m wide; extension from the west end to the east end of the property. o projecting approx. 4m from the existing two-storey extension and 7.5m from the main dwelling; o approx. 3.8m high from the same level as the rear extension; o A flat roof with two rooflights; o A bi-fold door with fixed-panel windows above on the north elevation; o the elevations will be rendered and painted to match existing.
3.0 PLANNING HISTORY 3.1 There is no previous application considered materially relevant to this application.
4.0 PLANNING POLICY 4.1 In terms of local policy, the site lies within an area designated as Predominantly Residential Use in the Douglas Local Plan 1998. The site is also within the Woodbourne Road Conservation Area.
4.2 In terms of strategic plan policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 contains the following policies that are considered materially relevant to the assessment of this current planning application:
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: (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".
4.4 "8.12.1 Extensions to Dwellings in built-up areas or sites designated for residential use: As a general policy, in built-up areas not controlled by Conservation Area or Registered Building policies, there will be a general presumption in favour of extensions to an existing property where such extensions would not have an adverse impact on either adjacent property or the surrounding area in general."
4.5 Residential Design Guidance (July 2019) provides advice on the design of new houses and extensions to an existing property as well as how to assess the impact of such development on the living conditions of those in adjacent residential property.
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4.6 RDG 3.2 Potential Visual Impact of an Extension upon the Existing House states a pitched roof is preferred to a flat roof, especially when it's publicly visible. However, an exception can be made when the existing property has a flat/low pitched roof design.
4.7 RDG 4.2 Single Storey Rear Extension sets out some key considerations. These include the impact on the amenities of those in neighbouring properties such as loss of light and/or overbearing. These impacts can be regulated by designing with the right depth (projection) and location. The section also specifically mentioned that terraced/semi-detached dwellings have the potential for the greatest concern due to the potential of "tunnel effect".
4.8 RDG 5 sets out key considerations regarding architectural details. These include window details and external finishing. The general idea is that the extension should have a similar style with the main dwelling for a coherent appearance unless the clash between modern and traditional design can be handled with elegance.
4.9 RDG 7 sets out key considerations regarding the impact on neighbouring properties. These include the potential loss of light/overshadowing, overbearing impact upon outlook and overlooking resulting in a loss of privacy.
5.0 REPRESENTATION 5.1 Douglas Borough Council has no objection on this application (14/10/2020).
5.2 DoI Highway Services has not commented at the time of the report (18/11/2020).
6.0 ASSESSMENT 6.1 The main concerns for this application are its impact on the character of the Conservation Area, on the appearance of the property itself and the amenities of the neighbours.
6.2 The single-storey extension is on the north of the property. It has a contemporary design compared to the existing main dwelling. Although the extension is partially visible from the alley next to the property, the flat roof design will not stand out when it is contrasted with the boundary wall. In addition, the main character of the Conservation Area is defined by the front elevation rather than the side and rear elevations. Therefore, the design is considered to preserve the character of the Conservation Area.
6.3 The extension is single storey and the site is aliening east-west with the neighbour on the west. There is an existing boundary wall about the same height as the proposed extension. Therefore, there is no concern for overbearing.
6.4 There is no additional vantage point created so there is little concern for overlooking.
7.0 CONCLUSION 7.1 The proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan and Residential Design Guide Section 3, 4, 5 and 7. Therefore, it is recommended for an approval.
8.0 INTERESTED PERSON STATUS 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019, the following persons are automatically interested persons: (a) the applicant (including an agent acting on their behalf); (b) any Government Department that has made written representations that the Department considers material; (c) the Highways Division of the Department of Infrastructure; (d) Manx National Heritage where it has made written representations that the Department considers material;
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(e) Manx Utilities where it has made written representations that the Department considers material; (f) the local authority in whose district the land which the subject of the application is situated; and (g) a local authority adjoining the authority referred to in paragraph (f) where that adjoining authority has made written representations that the Department considers material.
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 above who should be given Interested Person Status. __
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: 23.11.2020
Determining officer
Signed : C BALMER
Chris Balmer
Principal Planner
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