DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 19/01195/B Applicant: Mr Martin & Mrs Michelle Blyth Proposal: Alterations, erection of two storey side extension, single storey rear extension and installation of replacement windows Site Address: Stoneleigh St Georges Crescent Port Erin Isle Of Man IM9 6HR Principal Planner: Miss S E Corlett Photo Taken: 02.12.2019 Site Visit: 02.12.2019 Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 09.12.2019 _________________________________________________________________

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.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

This decision relates to drawings 010, 020 1, 030, 050 and 060, all received on 29th October, 2019. _______________________________________________________________

Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report THE SITE

1.1 The site is the residential curtilage of an existing, detached, two storey dwelling situated on the western side of St. George's Crescent looking towards Breagle Glen.

1.2 The dwelling is finished in dashed render with a red tiled roof and a series of projecting bay windows at first and ground floor levels. Vehicular access is to the northern side of the house in the form of a driveway leading from two stone pillars and parking for a number of vehicles by the side of the house. The dwelling sits 5m from the southern boundary with Dunkerron and 7m from the northern boundary with Whitebridge. The elevation of Whitebridge facing the application site has first and ground floor windows and a door and a rear conservatory on this side of its rear elevation. - 1.3 A lane runs behind the property, serving the dwellings on St. George's Crescent and Ballafurt Road. The properties in Ballafurt Road are 26m away in terms of the main two storey parts of the buildings and with outriggers which are around 21m away. - 1.4 The boundary between the property and Whitebridge is formed by a stone wall on the boundary which is generally 1m or lower with a higher timber fence on the neighbours' side. The fenceline partly screens the upper part of the ground floor window on the neighbour's side elevation. Above this is another window positioned towards the rear of this elevation. At the rear there is a tall dense hedge which screens almost all of the rear properties from ground level in the rear garden. The top of the rear roof slopes are visible from the rear garden nearest the back door. THE PROPOSAL

2.1 Proposed is the extension of the property by adding extensions to the north and to the rear and alterations to the dwelling. - 2.2 The side extension will provide garaging at ground floor level and living accommodation in the form of an en-suite bedroom, above. The extension will project 5.8m from the side of the house and will be 6m long. The single storey element has a larger floor area than the accommodation above, the extension stepping in 1.2m to the external wall at first floor level and with an eaves level marginally higher than that of Whitebridge and at a distance of 7m across the neighbour's flat roofed garage. There are to be no windows or doors in this elevation. - 2.3 The rear extension will project 4.5m from the rear elevation and be 4.4m wide with an asymmetrical pitched roof and walling in render and glass and a small section of cladding. - 2.4 The side extension continues back slightly further (0.6m) than the rear elevation in a pitched roofed form with full length glass doors and a Juliet-style balcony. - 2.5 Also proposed is the replacement of all of the existing windows with similar opening styles but without the diamond lead pattern. - 2.6 The applicants believe that the scheme accords with the Residential Design Guidance, following the design cues from the main house in the design and finish of the extensions. PLANNING POLICY

3.1 The site is designated on the Area Plan for the South adopted in 2013 as Residential. The site also lies within Port Erin's proposed Conservation Area. - 3.2 Development should accord with the general standards of development set out in 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;
• (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; (k) does not prejudice the use or development of adjoining land in accordance with the appropriate Area Plan."

3.3 The Department has recently introduced advice in the form of the Residential Design Guidance, July 2019 which provides information on good design and how to assess the impact of new development on the living conditions of those in neighbouring dwellings. The most relevant parts of that are as follows:

• 3.1.3 The main design elements that should be considered include:

• o the relationship to the original part of the building - including materials, design and detailing (such as window materials and proportions);
• o the relationship with adjoining properties, including the building line, roof line, orientation, and the slope of the site; and
• o the pitch, shape and materials of the original roof, including the presence of original dormers and chimneys.

4.2 SINGLE STOREY REAR EXTENSION 4.2.1 In relation to single storey extensions to the rear of the dwelling, generally the main issues relate to potential loss of light and/or overbearing impact upon the outlook of neighbouring properties.

Extensions to terraced or semi-detached properties can have the potential for the greatest concern. With either type of property the depth (i.e. rear projection) of an extension and the position (near the shared boundary) are key in ensuring any such extension does not impinge on the amenities of neighbouring properties

4.2.3 The acceptability of the length/depth of a single storey extension will depend on the positioning and size of neighbouring properties. For terraced houses and narrower semidetached properties, single storey extensions are unlikely to be supported where they project more than 3 metres from the back of the house.

Extension to side elevation

• 4.4.3 Whether the side extension is single or two storeys, the height and width of these side extensions should be proportionate to the size of the main dwelling. The width should be significantly less than the width of the main dwelling. The ridge height of single storey side extensions should normally be below the eaves level of a two-storey house to give clear definition between single storey and two-storey elements.

• 4.4.5 One way of maintaining a visual break would be to set back the extension behind the front of the dwelling by a metre to create a clear break. In some circumstances only the first floor would be required to be set back by 1 metre, although this will be determined on a case by case basis. However, it is still advisable that the ground floor should be set back behind the front elevation, even if only by 0.3m to create a "shadow" which avoids the unsightly joining of old with new finishes, whilst also providing a distinction, albeit modest, of the extension from the main house.

• 4.4.6 A second way of maintaining a visual break would be by leaving a gap of at least 1 metre between the side of the extension and the boundary of the property. However, a slight setback should still be retained, potentially at first floor level at least. Again, this design helps avoiding the "terracing effect". In any case, where space permits the Department would encourage applicants to retain a pedestrian passageway, between the side extension and common boundary. This will also enable access for maintenance purposes, filling of oil tanks, allow transportation of refuse and garden waste, without passing through Habitable Rooms and give the dwelling a setting within its own plot. Impact on neighbouring properties

• 7.2.1 There are some common issues in relation to impact on neighbouring properties which may apply to both new dwellings and extensions to dwellings, and these are:

• o potential loss of light/overshadowing;
• o potential overbearing impact upon outlook; and
• o potential overlooking resulting in a loss of privacy.

• 7.2.2 In assessing the above issues it is important to understand the functions of different rooms and the importance of the windows serving them. For the purpose of this document, the Department defines three types of rooms:

• o Primary Habitable Rooms - Living Rooms, Dining Rooms, Kitchens which includes dining facilities and Conservatory;
• o Secondary Habitable Rooms - Bedrooms and kitchens; and
• o Non-Habitable Rooms - these include bathrooms, utility rooms, hallways/corridors, stairs/landings, garages, porches and storage.

• 7.2.3 Within this document the phrase 'habitable room' means both Primary and Secondary unless otherwise indicated. However, in assessing impacts in relation to light/overshadowing and overbearing impact on outlook (but not overlooking) the Department draws a distinction between:

• o Primary Window - The main window serving a Primary Habitable Room. Where there is only
• one window, this is the Primary Window. Where there is more than one window, the Primary Window is normally the largest and the one which provides the most pleasant outlook; and o Secondary Window - Any window serving a room that is not the Primary Window.

- 7.5 OVERLOOKING RESULTING IN A LOSS OF PRIVACY

• 7.5.1 The "20 metre guide" provides a useful way to identify where overlooking is likely to be a concern. It refers to the distance between elevations that contain windows serving habitable rooms that face each other - if this distance is over 20 metres, overlook is unlikely to be a concern. This distance can be relaxed where the design or orientation is such that privacy and amenity of a neighbouring property is not compromised. In dense urban areas where there is already a level of mutual overlooking a lesser standard may be acceptable. The required distance may need to be greater if there is a change in topography, which would result in an adverse effect on the privacy and amenity of a neighbouring property.

3.4 Whilst the property lies within a proposed Conservation Area, the draft Conservation Area Appraisal contains the following advice:

St George's Crescent; this road consists of attractive villas dating from 1908 to 1950. However, the buildings are not of significant historical interest.

PLANNING HISTORY

4.1 The most relevant previous application was one for extensions which was refused 99/02366/B, for the reason that:

• "The proposed extension by reason of its size and proximity to the boundary with the adjoining property "Whitebridge" would detract from the visual amenity of the streetscene, by reducing the physical separation between the properties, a characteristic of St Georges Crescent, and detract from the visual amenity of Stoneleigh, by the introduction of a large expanse of roof to the front elevation."
• 4.2 This was a single storey extension to be built virtually on the boundary with Whitebridge and with a sloping roof which continued from eaves level to just above eaves level on the main house with a short section of ridgeline.

REPRESENTATIONS

5.1 Highway Services have no objection to the application (18.11.19). ASSESSMENT - 6.1 The issues in this case are whether the proposal would adversely affect the appearance of the property or the living conditions of those in Whitebridge.

6.2 The extension would add a hipped roofed feature to the property which has a gable ended main roof and this can sometimes appear awkward. However, the property also has a projecting pitched roofed gable on the front elevation which brings more angles to the front facade as well as bay windows which have roofs which slope up to the main walls of the front of the property. This, together with the replacement of the diamond leading to the windows will result in something which will be more modern but given the overall appearance of the property, which is not overly traditional, it is not considered that these changes are objectionable, particularly given the comments in the draft Conservation Area Appraisal. - 6.3 The extension will bring the property closer to existing first floor windows in Whitebridge, however, using the 25 degree measurement, it is not likely that this extension will result in an adverse impact on the outlook and light of this property. There is also another window which appears to serve the room of the first floor side window in this property.

CONCLUSION

7.1 The proposal is considered to have an acceptable impact on the environment, having regard to General Policy 2, the Residential Design Guidance and the draft Conservation Area Appraisal and 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.

8.3 The Department of Environment Food and Agriculture is responsible for the determination of planning applications. As a result, where officers within the Department make comments in a professional capacity they cannot 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: 12.12.2019 Determining officer

Signed : C BALMER Chris Balmer Principal Planner

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