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PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Application No. : 19/00519/B Applicant : Stam Limited Proposal : Alterations and conversion of light industrial unit to provide leisure facilities including axe throwing, restaurant, amusements and ancillary spaces Site Address : Unit 22 South Quay Industrial Estate Douglas Isle Of Man IM1 5AT
Planning Officer: Mr Nick Salt Photo Taken : 29.05.2019 Site Visit : 29.05.2019 Expected Decision Level : Planning Committee
Recommendation
Recommended Decision:
Permitted Date of Recommendation: 16.07.2019 __
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. The provisions within the Flood Risk Assessment Plan date stamped as received on 19/06/19 shall be adhered to in full for the duration of the use hereby approved on this site.
Reason: To ensure that adequate flood prevention and response measures remain in place.
Plans/Drawings/Information;
This decision relates to the following plans and drawings, date stamped received on 8th May 2019:
o JTM-1906-P-00 - Site location plan o JTM-1906-P-01 - Existing Site Plan, Ground Floor Plan & Elevation o JTM-1906-P-02 - Proposed Site Plan, Ground Floor Plan & Elevations o JTM-1906-P-03 - Proposed Internal Views
And the flood risk assessment date stamped received on 19/06/19.
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Interested Person Status - Additional Persons
It is recommended that Manx Utilities Authority should not be given Interested Person Status as they are not considered to have sufficient interest in the subject matter of the application to take part in any subsequent proceedings and are not mentioned in Article 6(4):
As they do not clearly identify the land which is owned or occupied which is considered to be impacted on by the proposed development in accordance with paragraph 2A of the Policy, are not within 20m of the application site and the development is not automatically required to be the subject of an EIA by Appendix 5 of the Strategic Plan, in accordance with paragraph 2B of the Policy and have not explained how the development would impact the lawful use of land owned or occupied by them and in relation to the relevant issues identified in paragraph 2C of the Policy, as is required by paragraph 2D of the Policy. __
Officer’s Report
THIS APPLICATION HAS BEEN BROUGHT BEFORE PLANNING COMMITTEE FOR DETERMINATION AS IT IS A DEPARTURE FROM THE DEVELOPMENT PLAN BUT IS RECOMMENDED FOR AN APPROVAL
1.0 THE SITE
1.1 The application site is Unit 22 on the South Quay in Douglas, a currently vacant light industrial unit facing the Marina with a floor space of approximately 263m2 situated between Swan House at the bottom of Douglas Head Road and 25 South Quay - an industrial unit to be demolished with a car park approved. The building itself is rendered, with rendered recessed apertures. Aside from the front façade, the building is of no notable architectural interest and similar to many older industrial units in the area.
1.2 There is a layby to the front (3 parking spaces), with footpath behind. From this footpath, the building's main entrance is a single access door in a larger timber framed opening at the front, with side and rear single and double doors. The building has one level throughout.
2.0 THE PROPOSAL
2.1 Proposed is the change of use of the building from light industrial use to an events venue with facilities for Class 3 - Food and Drink. This change of use would require some minor alterations to the building. Aside from general repair and repainting etc., this would include replacement of the timber main entrance with a glazed double door, the blocking up of a double door on the east facing elevation and the blocking up of louvres on the west facing elevation.
2.2 With regard to the use itself, the initial plan is for use as an Axe-throwing venue. This would be subject to the relevant licencing and safety procedures, and the change of us application would cover other similar leisure uses.
2.3 The caged-off axe throwing area would cover one part of the interior, with food and drink facilities and a spectator area, along with a secondary area for other facilities such as pool and table tennis. The opening hours are proposed as 5pm-11pm 7 days a week, with a target market of corporate groups and others through an online booking system. The floor plans show several lanes for the axe-throwing, seating areas and toilet facilities.
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2.4 No additional car parking would be provided but the Design and Access Statement for the application points out that the location is close to the town centre and associated public car parks.
3.0 PLANNING POLICY
3.1 The site is within an area designated in the Douglas Local Plan 1998 (South Map) as Light Industrial. The following policies of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 are relevant both due to the location of the site and the proposed use.
3.2 Strategic Policy 1 is important to consider as a base for the assessment of this application. "Development should make the best use of resources by: (a) optimising the use of previously developed land, redundant buildings, unused and under- used land and buildings, and re-using scarce indigenous building materials; (b) ensuring efficient use of sites, taking into account the needs for access, landscaping, open space(1) and amenity standards; and (c) being located so as to utilise existing and planned infrastructure, facilities and services."
3.3 Strategic Policy 10 is also relevant: "New development should be located and designed such as to promote a more integrated transport network with the aim to: (a) minimise journeys, especially by private car; (b) make best use of public transport; (c) not adversely affect highway safety for all users, and (d) encourage pedestrian movement."
3.4 General Policy 2 (in part) 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; (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; (l) is not on contaminated land or subject to unreasonable risk of erosion or flooding."
3.5 The site is partly within an area identified as at risk of coastal flooding at a 0.5% chance in any year (1 in 200 year event). Environment Policy 10 relates to flooding and states:
"Where development is proposed on any site where in the opinion of the Department of Local Government and the Environment there is a potential risk of flooding, a flood risk assessment and details of proposed mitigation measures must accompany any application for planning permission. The requirements for a flood risk assessment are set out in Appendix 4."
3.5.1 Furthermore, Environment Policy 13 states: "Development which would result in an unacceptable risk from flooding, either on or off-site, will not be permitted."
3.6 Business Policy 1: "The growth of employment opportunities throughout the Island will be encouraged provided that development proposals accord with the policies of this Plan."
3.7 Business Policy 5 is important given the land use designation:
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"On land zoned for industrial use, permission will be given only for industrial development or for storage and distribution; retailing will not be permitted except where either: (a) the items to be sold could not reasonably be sold from a town centre location because of their size or nature; or (b) the items to be sold are produced on the site and their sale could not reasonably be severed from the overall business; and, in respect of (a) or (b), where it can be demonstrated that the sales would not detract from the vitality and viability of the appropriate town centre shopping area."
3.8 Community Policy 7: "The design of new development and the extension and refurbishment of existing buildings and development must, as far as is reasonably practical, pay due regard to existing best practice so as to help prevent criminal and anti-social behaviour."
3.9 Transport Policy 1: "New development should, where possible, be located close to existing public transport facilities and routes, including pedestrian, cycle and rail routes."
3.10 Transport Policy 7: "The Department will require that in all new development, parking provision must be in accordance with the Department's current standards."
3.10.1 The current standards for leisure development are "1 space per 15 square metres gross floor space."
4.0 OTHER MATERIAL CONSIDERATIONS
4.1 The report of the Select Committee of Tynwald on the Development of Unoccupied urban sites (2017-2018) (hereafter "The Select Committee Report" recommended that,
"Tynwald calls upon the Council of Ministers and all Departments to use every means at their disposal to encourage and prioritise the development of unoccupied or previously developed urban sites ahead of building on greenfield sites in the Manx countryside; and in particular that Tynwald is of the opinion that urgent action should be taken ... (iv) to use the planning system, taxation and other potential incentives to discourage greenfield development; (v) to use the planning system, taxation and other potential incentives to encourage brownfield development in Development Zones in Douglas and in other urban areas".
4.2 The Area Plan for the East consultation draft has been published (consultation runs until the 31/08/18). This identifies that the application site is proposed for allocation as, "Mixed Use Proposal Area 7 (The Quayside)" and is part of Comprehensive Treatment Area 3 (Riverside and Peel Road). The written statement indicates that there will be a presumption in of the comprehensive re-development of the southern side of the quay for new uses for tourism, offices, food and drink, leisure, reception and function venues, business hubs/share-service offices and/or residential uses at first floor level and above". The supporting text indicates that redevelopment of the southern side to compliment the quayside as a whole is to be encouraged. Being within Comprehensive Treatment Area 3 indicates that the area could be developed for leisure, retail warehouse, offices and residential uses.
4.3 The Central Douglas Masterplan is not a statutory document but was approved by Tynwald in 2015, "as a general framework for the development of Central Douglas, a material consideration in the determination of planning applications and the formulation of planning policy, most notably the Area Plan for the East". The format of the Masterplan was intended to ensure that, "The evidence base and project proposals could be reviewed for inclusion in the Area Plan for the East". It breaks the area down into 8 Character Areas based on a combination of function and identity. Within each Character Area individual project proposals are set out to strengthen the Character Areas, and carry forward the Vision and Objectives. It forms part of the evidence base to the Area Plan.
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4.4 The Employment Land Review (ELR) was produced in 2015, and in 2016 an update was commissioned, which was finalised and published in 2017. The Headline findings for this included that, "The majority of demand for employment floorspace continues to focus on locations in the East", "Available land in the East is limited to 2ha, a land supply of under 3 years at historic rates" and "Over the last 18 months, windfall development opportunities have emerged within existing allocations which have absorbed requirements. Such opportunities will become increasingly restricted. This will be further compounded as industrial requirements increase".
5.0 PLANNING HISTORY
5.1 There was a previous application for residential and commercial use on this site in 2008 which included the building in question in addition to the large area to the rear which has now been turned into industrial buildings and a car park. The reasons for refusal were:
R1 - The proposed development would be contrary to Strategic Policies 7 and 9, General Policy 2, Business Policies 5, 7 and 10 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that:
the site is not zoned for retail, offices or residential purposes; 2) insufficient evidence has been submitted to demonstrate the retail purposes would not adversely affect the vitality and viability of Douglas Town Centre, and 3) the redevelopment of the site would result in the loss of industrial land.
R2 - The proposed redevelopment would be contrary to Environment Policy 26 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that the outline remediation strategy does not demonstrate that there is no unacceptable risk to health, property or adjacent watercourses
R3 - The proposed redevelopment would be contrary to General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that the outline remediation strategy proposes hardstanding and hard landscaping across much of the site surface, which would create a poor residential environment for future occupiers of the residential units and would result in a poor form of development to the detriment of the visual amenities of the locality.
R4 - The proposed redevelopment for residential purposes would be contrary to General Policy 2 and Environment Policy 24 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that it is impossible to conclude that the noise mitigation measures are acceptable for the development as no detailed layout plans or detailed mitigation proposals have been submitted for consideration.
R5 - The indicative layout would be contrary to Recreation Policy 3 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that the development does not provide adequate open space provision within the proposed layout. In the absence of details showing how the required level of on-site open space could be provided, and bearing in mind the known ground contamination issues, the Planning Authority is not satisfied that the proposed development could accommodate the required level of open space.
R6 - The proposed redevelopment would be contrary to General Policy 2 and Housing Policy 6 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 in that the piecemeal development of the site and the industrial/commercial nature of the surrounding uses would result in a poor outlook and general environment for future occupiers of the new apartments.
5.2 There has been an increase in recent application for new uses for sites on the South Quay as its suitability for modern industrial requirements is reduced. This includes residential and car parking.
6.0 REPRESENTATIONS
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6.1 Manx Utilities (Flooding) provided comments on 28.05.19 where they noted that the site lies within a tidal flood zone (as per Douglas flood map), they recommended a Floor Risk Assessment be carried out and that floor levels be raised with an additional 300mm freeboard.
6.2 DoI Highway Services were consulted but provided no comments on the proposal at the time of writing of this report. Similarly, no comments were received from Douglas Borough Council.
7.0 ASSESSMENT
7.1 The key considerations in the assessment of this application are: o The principle of the change of use from light industrial to the mixed leisure use proposed; o Loss of employment land; o The parking and access situation on the site and its suitability for the proposed use; o The visual and amenity impacts on the area; o The risk of flooding.
7.2 Principle of the Use
7.2.1 The site is zoned for Light Industrial use, the use of the land for any purpose other than light industrial is therefore not in accordance with the Development Plan. It is not considered that the proposal would meet the exceptions stated in Business Policy 5 which mainly relate to 'retail warehouse' uses incompatible with town centres.
7.2.2 There is a lack of sites allocated specifically for leisure use and therefore such uses may be acceptable on some industrial sites. That the principle of the proposal does not accord with the development plan in this respect, is not in itself an automatic reason to refuse the application.
7.3 Loss of employment land
7.3.1 The use is not light industrial and so is not in accordance with the zoning of the Douglas Local Plan. The application site does not appear to have been included in the land supply as set out in the ELR and as such if redeveloped for employment purposes it would constitute a windfall site (although only a net change in use/density from the baseline year - 2014 - would be counted towards meeting the ELR target). The site is somewhat limited as to the scale of industrial use that could be accommodated given both its location and size.
7.4 Parking and Access
7.4.1 No new parking is proposed for the site. And as specific numbers of expected customer levels have not been provided, it would be difficult to establish potential demand for parking. The proposal therefore does not accord with Transport Policy 7. That being said, the site is less than 200 metres by foot from the North Quay and Train Station. Parking is not ample for the many cafes and restaurants on the North Quay however the use of taxis, public transport, and public car parks nearby reduce demand. The same availability of public parking and alternative transport would be available to customers of the venue, in accordance with Transport Policy 1.
7.5 Visual and Amenity Impacts
7.5.1 Visually, the building will be brought back into use, and refurbished where necessary to accommodate that. This would in effect 'tidy up' its appearance thus contributing positively to
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a South Quay street scene which is of poor character and appearance. Generally, however, the alterations will be minimal. The proposal would accord with General Policy 2 in this respect.
7.5.2 This would also be the case in terms of amenity. A previous planning application was refused (as noted in 4.1) due to the lack of adequate residential amenities for residents in this area. This proposal would not involve any permanent residency and it is considered that the limited amenities within the building itself would be sufficient, as would its ease of accessibility from the main town centre. There are no residential properties in the immediate vicinity which would be affected by the proposal in terms of crowd noises, loud music etc.
7.5.3 The use of the venue for axe throwing raises the immediate concern of safety. However, the activity would be subject to appropriate licensing and insurance measures outside of planning.
7.5.4 The reuse of this site for entertainment usage would provide additional amenity to the residents of Douglas, the Island as a whole and visitors, diversifying the entertainment offerings available.
7.6 The Risk of Flooding
7.6.1 Issues of flooding have been raised by Manx Utilities (MUA) as part of the site lies within a coastal flooding risk area. In response, the applicant has provided a flood risk assessment (FRA) which has been seen by MUA. This includes the raising of electrical points to a minimum of 450mm, the addition of salt additives to lime plaster internally, adequate access and egress arrangements and staff training. The FRA is considered appropriate and sufficient to address these concerns.
8.0 CONCLUSION
8.1 The use of the site for leisure purposes would reflect a trend in favour of the reuse of Quayside areas for new purposes, as has been successfully done in the past with the North Quay. In many respects, the South Quay has lost its appeal for industrial uses partly due to its location on the periphery of the town centre, and partly due to the industrial buildings themselves being unfit for modern industry. The site property in question has sat vacant, as industry gradually moves towards the out-of -town industrial parks. There is an opportunity to vary the uses on the South Quay to revitalise it and further connect it to the North Quay and wider Town Centre. This proposal could contribute to achieving this and the principal of it is therefore regarded as an acceptable deviation from the land use designation.
8.2 In summary, the proposal, whilst not according with the land use designation and Business Policy 5, would accord with the other Strategic Plan policies in Section 3 of this report. On balance, the reuse of this site would bring benefits to Douglas which would outweigh the loss of an industrial building, and the lack of onsite parking. This application is therefore recommended for approval.
8.3 It is not recommended that any condition restricting hours of use is added to an approval due to both the location of the site relative to the nearest residential properties, and the fact that licensing will be required if any alcohol were to be served on the site in the future.
9.0 INTERESTED PERSON STATUS
9.1 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;
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(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.
9.2 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. __
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:...29.07.2019
Signed :...S CORLETT... Presenting Officer
Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason was required (included as supplemental paragraph to the officer report).
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 online services/customers and archive records.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE DECISION 29.07.2019
Application No. :
19/00519/B Applicant : Stam Limited Proposal : Alterations and conversion of light industrial unit to provide leisure facilities including axe throwing, restaurant, amusements and ancillary spaces Site Address : Unit 22 South Quay Industrial Estate Douglas Isle Of Man IM1 5AT
Planning Officer : Mr Nick Salt Presenting Officer S CORLETT
Addendum to the Officer’s Report
The Planning Committee approved the application at its meeting of 29th July, 2019 subject to an additional condition which controls the hours of operation to 1700 - 2300hrs on any day.
Additional Conditions of Approval
C 3. The leisure facility hereby approved may be open for business only between the hours of 1700 and 2300hrs on any day.
Reason: To ensure that the hours of operation result in there being sufficient car parking available to serve the development.
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