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Application No.: 15/00128/C Applicant: Department Of Home Affairs Proposal: Change of use of existing residential care hostel to a residential and resettlement centre together with offices and welfare facilities for the Probation Service Site Address: Tromode House Ballafletcher Road Cronkbourne Douglas Isle Of Man IM4 4QE Case Officer : Miss S E Corlett Expected Decision Level: Planning Committee
THIS APPLICATION IS REFERRED TO THE PLANNING COMMITTEE DUE TO THE LEVEL OF OBJECTION TO THE SCHEME
1.1 The site is the curtilage of an existing building with its associated car parking and amenity space. The property was formerly referred to as Cummal Shee and was used for the secure accommodation of those who voluntarily or by order were required to be supervised there and has most recently been used as children's accommodation through the Children's Centre and other accommodation services. The property is now referred to as Tromode House. - 1.2 The site is surrounded by mature hedging and sits opposite Cronkbourne Village, a group of Registered Buildings alongside the Old School House which is also Registered. Cronkbourne Village is owned by Braddan Parish Commissioners and operated as public sector housing. The Old School House is offices in private ownership. - 1.3 The site takes its access off a lane which runs alongside the River Glass and provides access to the former abattoir and the current creameries buildings. This is also a public footpath which leads to Castleward Green. - 1.4 The building is modern property with a steeply pitched roof which accommodates living accommodation within it. The existing mature vegetation surrounding the site screens it from general public view. THE PROPOSAL
2.1 Proposed is the change of use of the building from a residential care hostel to "accommodation for a residential rehabilitation and resettlement centre together with offices and welfare facilities for the probation service." The change is essentially the inclusion of offices on the ground floor which is currently laid out as residential accommodation and retention of the upper floor as residential accommodation - nine bedrooms and two staff bedrooms, bathrooms, a meeting room and lounge. The submitted plans are not to scale. - 2.2 Currently the Probation Service is based in Douglas in Prospect House split over two floors which is not ideal or an effective use of space. The current rehabilitation and resettlement
3.1 The site is identified on the Braddan Local Plan of 1991 as Government Use. The Local Plan contains the following policies which are considered relevant:
paragraph 3.3 POLICY: NO ADDITIONAL OFFICE DEVELOPMENT WILL BE PERMITTED INT HE BRADDAN PARISH DISTRICT WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THOSE NECESSARY FOR THE FUNCTIONING OF AN APPROVED INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT, INCLUDING SCIENCE BASED INDUSTRIES, OR WHERE AN INDIVIDUAL OFFICE CAN BE SHOWN TO BE NECESSARY SOLELY FOR THE NEEDS OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. CONVERSION OF EXISTING STRUCTURES WILL BE PREFERRED TO NEW DEVELOPMENT".
3.2 The Strategic Plan encourages office use to be provided within existing settlements and town and village settlements (Business Policy 7). PLANNING HISTORY
5.2 The resident of 1, Larch Hill which lies over 200m to the north east objects to the application on the basis that the proposal has the potential to accommodate sex offenders and paedophiles on a transit route for children via the public transport network and the proximity of the site to Ballafletcher Sports grounds and the Tromode football, cricket and cadet facilities. He believes that there is no supervision of the residents whilst off the premises and as the surrounding areas are dark, the residents' safety will be compromised. He believes that recidivism is more prevalent in bail hostels in rural locations than in built up areas due to boredom and this is exacerbated by the dark lanes and fields which surround the site (24.02.15). - 5.3 The residents of 6, Larch Hill which lies some 205m to the north east fear that the proposal will adversely affect the property values of their home and their privacy will be compromised by the nature of the potential residents and seek assurance that the occupants will not be sex offenders. There are plenty of other more suitable locations in Douglas (received on 27.02.15).
5.4 The residents of 3, Tromode Close which lies some 120m to the north east, object to the application (26.02.15). They are concerned that the proposal will have a detrimental impact on the community of Tromode and do not believe that the site is suitable for the proposed use as the bus service is infrequent - for example there not being a bus into Douglas before 1030hrs with the resultant walk taking 25 minutes. The bus stop outside the site is frequented by large groups of children and they are concerned that the clientele of the site may include drug and sex offenders. They are concerned that drug users will attract drug dealers into the neighbourhood. The area has no social amenities and the "tranquil garden area" referred to in the supporting documentation could attract unsavoury and undesirable characters to the area. The fact that little physical changes are required should not override the detrimental impacts on the community which the objectors feel will result from the proposal. - 5.5 The resident of 6, Larch Hill Grove which lies some 160m to the north east objects to the application on the basis that the proposal will adversely affect the value of her property and will compromise her privacy. She moved from her previous central Douglas address 5 years ago due to this kind of facility being in the vicinity and made residents uneasy in their own homes (25.02.15).
6.1 The residential part of the proposed is no different in use class terms to the present use. This is essentially, Schedule 4 of the Town and Country Planning (Permitted Development) Order 2012, Class 8 of the Use Classes Order:
Class 8 Hospitals, nursing homes and residential institutions Use as a hospital or nursing home. Use for the provision of residential accommodation and care to people in need of care. In this Class "care" has the same meaning as in Class 7.
6.2 Class 7 relates to Hotels and hostels: Use as a hotel or boarding or guest house where, in each case, no significant element of care is provided. In this Class "care" means personal care for persons in need of personal care by reason of old age, disablement, past or present dependence on alcohol or drugs, or past or present mental disorder. - 6.3 The Use Classes are a list of different types of uses where planning approval is not required to change between the different types of use described within the class. - 6.4 The Town and Country Planning (Permitted Development) Order provides for a further change, that from a residential care home to a dwelling or vice versa:
Schedule 3, Part 1: Class 1 Residential care home The change of use of a building from use as a dwellinghouse to use as a residential care home, or from use as a residential care home to use as a dwellinghouse. Exceptions: A change of use within this Class is not permitted if the building in question -
(16); and
6.5 The current Use Classes do not make a distinction between residents who are in a care facility of their own volition and those who are required by law to be there under supervision. The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1982 did just that, having two classes for accommodating offering care:
Class 8 - Use as a home or institution providing for the boarding, care and maintenance of children, old people or persons under disability, a convalescent home, a nursing home, a sanatorium or a hospital (other than a hospital, home hostel or institution included in Class 10) and
Class 10 - Use as a hospital, home, or institution for persons suffering from mental disorder, or epileptic persons, or a home, hostel or institution in which persons may be detained by order of a court of [sic] persons residing there under a requirement of a probation or supervision order".
6.6 There has therefore been a conscious step away from including the nature of the accommodation in the current Use Classes, concentrating more on the nature of the use rather than the user. As such, concern over the nature of the residents and their potential for anti-social behaviour is not an issue as the residential aspect of the proposal is not subject to planning control in this case. However, it is worthy of consideration that the site is well positioned in terms of being close to other residential property in terms of being able to integrate the residents into a residential environment but at the same time, the building is on the opposite side of the road to other residential property and is somewhat distinct in that respect and has a sizeable curtilage in which the occupants may have outside space available to them without impacting on adjacent land users. It is relevant that the owners of the properties closest to the site - Braddan Parish Commissioners who are the owners of the Cronkbourne Village dwellings - do not object to the application. - 6.7 The principal change proposed here is the introduction of non-related offices on the ground floor. The implications for this relate to the principle of offices in this location and secondly the impact on car parking and access. - 6.8 The site is designated as Government Use on the Braddan Local Plan and what is proposed is consistent with that. However, Government's current policy on the location of offices, hinted at in the Braddan Plan and stated clearly in the Strategic Plan is that offices should be based in existing settlements ideally on land designated for those purposes. The site is within a built up area although not identified as a settlement specifically - the area represents a meeting point of Douglas, Braddan and Onchan and accommodates employment, industry, residential and commercial uses. The site is different from the adjacent industrial estate in terms of its designation. - 6.9 The use is related although not directly, to the use on the upper floor. The Department of Home Affairs services are varied and include ones which are located at Nobles Hospital (see PA 13/91505/B) which converted the former Newlands medical rehabilitation facility to a rehabilitation and resettlement centre together with multi agency offices and welfare facilities. It was considered that the proximity of this site to other rehabilitation facilities (alcohol and drug unit alongside) was useful and as such that location was considered acceptable. - 6.10 The facility is likely to result in the need for more vehicles to be accommodated within the site than at present due to the incoming clients for care as well as those resident at the premises. The application indicates that there will be a maximum of 10 clients associated with the rehabilitation and reception centre, 8-10 staff associated with the probation services. The
7.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013, the following persons are automatically interested persons:
In this instance, it is recommended that the following persons do not have sufficient interest and should not be awarded the status of an Interested Person, due to the distance from the site to their property:
1, Larch Hill 6, Larch Hill 6, Larch Hill Grove and
Recommendation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation:
08.05.2015
Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal
C : Conditions for approval
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.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This approval relates to drawings TH1, TH2 and TH3 all received on 6th February, 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 : ……PER…… Committee Meeting Date:…18.05.2015 Signed :………S CORLETT…….. Presenting Officer Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason was required (included as supplemental paragraph).
YES/NO
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