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Application No.: 15/00025/C Applicant: The Tommy Clucas Memorial Fund Proposal: Temporary change of use of clubhouse, sports hall and pitch to a camp site for TT Practice and Race Weeks including five days either side for erection and disassembling camp site, for three years commencing TT 2015 Site Address: Peel Football Club Douglas Road Peel Isle of Man IM5 1LJ Case Officer : Miss S E Corlett Site Visit: 29.01.2015 Expected Decision Level: Planning Committee
THIS APPLICATION IS REFERRED TO THE PLANNING COMMITTEE AS OTHER APPLICATIONS FOR TEMPORARY CAMP SITES HAVE ALSO BEEN SO REFERRED
1.1 The site is the grounds of Peel Football Club, located on the south western side of the A1 TT Course as it enters the town. The site accommodates the football pitch, the clubhouse and the recently constructed Tommy Clucas Memorial Sports Hall which sits alongside the clubhouse. Access is directly from the main road and into a car park. - 1.2 To the north west are residential properties which are part of The Links. Meadowcourt and Melschede are the two closest properties and separated from the football ground by mature planting and vegetation. THE PROPOSAL
2.1 Proposed is the use of the football field as a camp site for TT fortnight with 5 days either side for setting up and disassembling the campsite. The application is for a three year period commencing in TT 2015. - 2.2 The campers will be able to use the Tommy Clucas Community Sportshall toilet facilities and the changing rooms, canteen and toilets in the football clubhouse which has television facilities. The campers would not be able to cook within the clubhouse but catering facilities may be provided either within the clubhouse or separately via an outside catering van. The applicant has liaised with a local travel agent who would organise bookings for the campsite with a mix of pre-erected tents and pitches for people to erect their own tents. The only other campsite in Peel is generally full in the TT period, they understand. - 2.3 The application states that the site is within convenient walking distance of all of Peel's amenities and there is a good bus service with stops very close to the application site for those who may need to use public transport.
2.4 The applicant estimates that the ground will be able to accommodate around 100 tents, possibly more. They explain that there is adequate lighting of the car park and pitch and no additional lighting is considered to be required. PLANNING POLICY AND STATUS
3.1 The site is identified on the Peel Local Plan of 1989 as Football Ground. - 3.2 In planning terms, there is no provision within the Strategic Plan to support new camp site. Most camp sites are proposed within rural areas where this form of development is treated the same as any other form of development in the countryside - that is, there is a presumption against development. However, it is recognised that camping is becoming an important part of the Island's tourist attractions and an increasing popular form of tourist accommodation and understood that Department of Economic Development is supportive of initiatives which attract and accommodate more visitors to and on the Island. A number of camp sites have been approved - some brand new ("Silly Moos" in Lezayre, Ballaugh Glen, Knockaloe Beg), others which have existed in an unauthorised form for some time and some of which now have approval (Glenlough in Marown). Encouragement is given for such facilities to be grouped near to existing buildings and where possible, to complement existing operations on the same site. More recently planning approval has been granted for more urban sites - at Ballakermeen High School and the National Sports Centre (PAs 14/00921/C and 13/91360/C). PLANNING HISTORY
4.1 The site has been the subject of previous applications, none of which are considered relevant to the consideration of the current application. REPRESENTATIONS - 5.1 Peel Town Commissioners indicate that they support the application and are regularly turning people away from their campsite within the town (18.12.15).
5.2 Department of Infrastructure Highway Services indicated initially that additional information was required but following discussion with the applicant, they now recommend that "the applicant has demonstrated that there is sufficient parking being provided on site, the numbers are based on previous experience.
The use of the access is unlikely to coincide with the peak travel movements on the highway; the school will be closed for the TT period this year but will be open for part of the first week in each of the following years and there will be exams during the festival periods.
The use as a camp site will increase traffic using the access however it is for a limited period of time during a period when traffic behaviour is atypical, and is unlikely to coincide with peak travel movements on the existing highway.
If the application is to be approved the following conditions should be added:
Note: it is recommended that the applicant carries out a survey of the parking use to support future applications."
5.3 The owner of Cronk Baare which lies approximately 270m to the west, has no objection to the application in principle but would like measures to be introduced to assist traffic safety, particularly in respect of the likelihood of a pedestrian and vehicle accident (03.02.15). She notes that the access into the site is very narrow and directly opposite the entrance to the secondary school. Whilst currently the school is not operational during the fortnight of TT week this may not be the case in future years. Exams sometimes take place in these times so there may be pupils in attendance and vehicles are parked alongside the site on Tynwald Road and to add traffic to this will compound existing highway safety concerns. Traffic often exceeds the 20/30 mph limit and an added concern is the possibility that pupils will be attracted to the catering facilities provided and additional pedestrians crossing the road will add to highway safety concerns.
6.1 The scheme will provide additional tourist accommodation for the Island in general and will also bring tourists to Peel who may not otherwise come and who will support local businesses and services.
6.2 There are two properties on the Peel side of the site - Melschede and Meadowcourt both of which are separated from the football pitch by mature landscaping. Considering that the campsite will be operational for only two weeks or slightly more, and the football ground is used most weekends, it is considered that there will be a limited impact, if any on those in these two properties. - 6.3 The location is considered to be a sustainable one and the operation of the camp site will in the main (ie during race and practice periods) coincide with the school half term which will limit the impact of any additional vehicles on the road network. The area around QEII School is influenced by the parking of school children's vehicles and the traffic movements associated with these. Whilst the applicant is seeking time either side of the race and practice periods for the setting up and dismantling and actual camping, in practice most visitors come during and for the practice and race periods rather than time before or after. - 6.4 It is important that the operation of the camp site does not adversely affect highway safety and the comments of Department of Infrastructure Highway Services are particularly important here. Restricting the camping to tents will reduce the possibility of accidents when vehicles are coming in and out of the site but it is also relevant that the site is a football pitch which already generates significant numbers of people visiting for matches where large numbers of vehicles arrive and depart at the same time and a further sports facility has recently been approved on the site, served by the same access and increasing traffic using the site. - 6.5 Particularly bearing in mind the approvals granted for other camping sites on the Island, it is considered that this site is suitable for the proposed use and the application is recommended for approval.
7.1 The local authority is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013, paragraph 6 (4) (e), considered "interested persons" and as such should be afforded party status.
7.2 Department of Infrastructure Highway Services is granted interested party status under the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013 paragraph 6 (4) d. - 7.3 The owner of Cronk Baare is not sufficiently close to justify affording them interested person status, although their comments on the application are welcome.
8.0 PLANNING COMMITTEE SUPPLEMENTARY REPORT - 8.1 In the absence of the Case Officer, Miss McKnight summarised the key issues as set out in the report. - 8.2 The planning application was discussed with regards to parking, motorhome restrictions and the number of pitches. - 8.3 Following discussion the Members determined that a condition be applied limiting the maximum number of tents to 100 and as such Condition 4 reads as follows: The maximum number of pitches to be available for use shall be restricted to 100. Reason: In the interests of amenity.
Recommendation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation:
02.02.2015
Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal
C : Conditions for approval
Reason: the application is for the use of the site for the TT period only and whilst provision should be made for setting up and dismantling the camp site, the site should not be used for camping outside those times reasonably associated with these race periods.
N 1. Note: it is recommended that the applicant carries out a survey of the parking use to support future applications.
This approval relates to drawings PFC/TC/2/12, PFC/TC/2/12/A, PFC/TC/1/12, PFC/TC/3 and PAFC/1/97 all received on 14th January, 2015.
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 : Approved Committee Meeting Date:…09.03.2015 Signed : Miss M McKnight Presenting Officer Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason was required (included as supplemental paragraph). Signatory to delete as appropriate YES See Planning Committee supplementary report under Paragraph 8.0 of this report.
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