24 July 2025 · Delegated - Principal Planner (Chris Balmer)
Brightlife, Ballalheaney, Andreas Road, Andreas, Isle Of Man, IM7 4en
Brightlife Spa and Conference Facility, located in open countryside near Andreas village, applied to extend its curtilage into adjacent agricultural field by incorporating 510sqm of land, including built structures like raised terraces (up to 1.4m high, 103sqm), spa pools, a 4.4m x 3.5m sauna, 4m x 2.3m glazed garden p…
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The officer determined the proposal failed General Policy 3 as it represented unjustified encroachment into undeveloped agricultural land outside settlement boundaries, with no evidence of overriding …
General Policy 3
Requires exceptional circumstances for countryside development, such as reuse of redundant buildings; proposal fails as it encroaches into agricultural land without overriding need or operational necessity, despite ample existing curtilage space. Officer tested against all exceptions and found none applicable.
Environment Policy 1
Protects countryside for its own sake, permitting development only with overriding need and no alternatives; proposal adversely affects openness/rural qualities without justification, as space exists within curtilage. Key tension: economic benefits do not override countryside protection.
General Policy 2
Requires respect for site character, landscape integration, no harm to ecology (2(b,c,d,f)); failed on visual domestication, layout/scale undermining rural setting, and unassessed ecological impacts near trees/hedgerows.
Strategic Policy 2 - Priority for new development to identified towns and villages
Directs new development to towns/villages, countryside only in exceptional cases; proposal conflicts by extending commercial spa into open fields without exception.
Environment Policy 14
Prevents unnecessary loss of productive agricultural land (Classes 1-2); Class 3/2 land may include higher-quality soils, no survey provided, no justification over existing curtilage alternatives.
Strategic Policy 4
Requires protection/enhancement of landscape/nature conservation in rural areas; proposal diminishes rural character and lacks evidence to avoid ecological harm.
Spatial Policy 5
Requires positive environmental contribution; built/hard landscaping erodes openness despite natural materials, not enhancing rural landscape.
no objection - no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network functionality and/or parking as the existing accesses, proposed internal layout and parking provision on-site is acceptable
Clareville, a local resident, submitted a representation raising concerns about light pollution in a Dark Skies area and noise impacts in a rural setting, requesting specific conditions to mitigate these issues.
Key concern: preserving the dark skies designation
Clareville
Conditional No ObjectionGiven the importance of preserving the dark skies designation, no floodlighting should be permitted as part of this development.; A condition should be attached requiring that this lighting be retrofitted with low-level alternatives.; It is therefore essential that any new filtration or mechanical equipment associated with this new development does not generate noise that would negatively affect immediate neighbours.
Conditions requested: No floodlighting is permitted, with only low-level lighting allowed; Existing high-level lighting in the car park is retrofitted to a lower level and/or additional landscaping is introduced to reduce its impact; Any new filtration or mechanical equipment operates at noise levels that do not adversely impact neighbouring properties; Any external lighting should be restricted to low-level, downward-facing fixtures that minimize light pollution and adhere to best practices for dark sky preservation; Appropriate noise attenuation measures should be included to ensure that operational sound levels remain in line with rural ambient noise levels, particularly during nighttime hours
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