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PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Application No. : 20/00932/B Applicant : Quiggin And Cubbon Limited Proposal : Partial Demolition of the Existing Bulidng and the filling of External Walls Site Address : Workshop Berkeley Street Douglas Isle Of Man IM2 3QA

Planning Officer: Mr Peiran Shen Photo Taken : 10.09.2020 Site Visit : 10.09.2020 Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation

Recommendation

Recommended Decision:

Permitted Date of Recommendation: 06.05.2021 __

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 26 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

C 2. Prior to the commencement of the development details of the infilled masonry shall be submitted and approved by the Department and these approved details shall be fully adhered to and retained thereafter.

Reason: In the interests of the visual amenities of the area and preserve the character of the Conservation Area.

C 3. Within three months of the removal of the red sections on drawing Nr 02 REV A all infilling shown as green on the same drawing shall be completed (In accordance with Conation 2 also) and retained thereafter.

Reason: In the interests of the visual amenities of the area and preserve the character of the Conservation Area.

This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The application is considered to comply with General Policy 2, Environment Policy 35 and Environment Policy 39 of the Strategic Plan and Planning Policy Statement 1/01.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

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This approval relates to the submitted documents, structural report date-stamped as having been received on 14th August 2020 and drawing no. 02A date-stamped as having been received on 4th February 2021. __

Interested Person Status - Additional Persons

It is recommended that the following Government Departments should not be given Interested Person Status on the basis that although they have made written submissions these do not relate to planning considerations:

DoI Flood Risk Management __

Officer’s Report

1.0 THE SITE 1.1 The application site is the industrial curtilage of Workshop, Berkley Street, Douglas, a set of terraced two storey and one storey buildings located between Berkley Street and Albany Lane. The site was used as workshops and storage but it is currently vacant. A section in the middle of the site is not owned by the applicant and is therefore not part of the application.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL 2.1 The proposed is the partial demolition of the existing buildings and the filling of external elevations.

2.2 The proposal originally is for full demolition of the buildings and the erection mesh security fencing, the proposed has been revised due to objection from the Principle Registered Building Officer (PRBO).

2.3 Although the revision was fully advertised, the description did not change at the time of the re-advertising. For keeping an accurate record, the description has been changed to the version in section 2.1 without being re-advertise as there has been not public comment received from the initial advertising periods started.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY 3.1 Demolition of existing light industrial units and erection of two light industrial units with ground floor storage, first floor offices and associated parking and drainage was APPROVED at APPEAL under PA 13/91190/B.

3.2 Variation of condition 2 of PA 96/01394/B by Manx Churches Adoption & Welfare Society to enable the property to be used by any other office user was APPROVED under PA 14/00805/C.

4.0 PLANNING POLICY 4.1 In terms of local policy, the site lies within an area designated as Predominantly Residential Use in the Area Plan for the East. The site is within the Selborne Road Conservation Area.

4.2 In terms of strategic policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 contains the following policies that are considered materially relevant to the assessment of this current planning application:

4.3 General Policy 2 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:

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(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; (i) does not have an unacceptable effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways (m) takes account of community and personal safety and security in the design of buildings and the spaces around them."

4.4 Environment Policy 35 states: "Within Conservation Areas, the Department will permit only development which would preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Area, and will ensure that the special features contributing to the character and quality are protected against inappropriate development."

4.5 Section 7.32.2 states: "The general presumption will be in favour of retaining buildings which make a positive contribution to the character or appearance of the Conservation Area. When considering proposals which will result in demolition of a building in a Conservation Area, attention will be paid to the part played in the architectural or historic interest of the area by the relevant building and the wider effects of demolition on the building's surroundings and on the Conservation Area as a whole. In addition, consideration will be given to: o the condition of the building; o the cost of repairing and maintaining it in relation to its importance and the issue derived from its continued use (based on consistent long-term assumptions); o the adequacy of efforts made to retain the building in use; o the merits of alternative proposals for the site."

4.6 Environment Policy 39 states: "The general presumption will be in favour of retaining buildings which make a positive contribution to the character or appearance of the Conservation Area."

4.7 Planning Policy Statement 1/01 - Conservation of the Historic Environment of the Isle of Man sets out general planning considerations.

4.8 POLICY CA/2 SPECIAL PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS states: "When considering proposals for the possible development of any land or buildings which fall within the conservation area, the impact of such proposals upon the special character of the area, will be a material consideration when assessing the application. Where a development is proposed for land which, although not within the boundaries of the conservation area, would affect its context or setting, or views into or out of the area; such issues should be given special consideration where the character or appearance of a conservation area may be affected."

4.9 POLICY CA/6 DEMOLITION states: "Any building which is located within a conservation area and which is not an exception as provided above, may not be demolished without the consent of the Department. In practice, a planning application for consent to demolish must be lodged with the Department. When considering an application for demolition of a building in a conservation area, the general presumption will be in favour of retaining buildings which make a positive contribution to the character or appearance of the conservation area. Similar criteria will be applied as those outlined in RB/6 above, when assessing the application to demolish the building, but in less clear cut cases, for example, where a building could be said to detract from the special character of the area, it will be essential for the Department to be able to consider the merits of any proposed new development when determining whether consent should be given for the demolition of an unregistered building in a conservation area. Account will be taken of the part played in the architectural or historic interest of the area by the building for which demolition is proposed, and in particular of the wider effects of demolition on the building's surroundings and on the conservation area as a whole."

5.0 REPRESENTATION

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5.1 Douglas Borough Council has no objection on this application (17/02/2021).

5.2 DoI Highway Services do not oppose this application (23/02/2021). The comment states that there is no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network efficiency and /or parking. The applicant is also advised that a licence may be necessary for the positioning of equipment and materials in the highway.

5.3 DoI Flood Risk Management Division states there is no flood risk management interest in this application (22/03/2021).

5.4 Principle Registered Building Officer (PRBO) wrote in objection of the application (16/09/2020). The comment points out that the previous demolition was approved under the premise that a replacement building was proposed. The demolition would create another gap in the Douglas Conservation Area and does not conform to conservation policies. The comment also points out that there is a lack of information regarding the impact on the conservation or the justifying weighting against preservation than demolition. The comment states that proposal would fail to preserve or enhance the character and appearance of the conservation area.

5.5 The PRBO has since reviewed the revised plan and has no objection to the revision (27/01/2021).

6.0 ASSESSMENT 6.1 The main concerns for this application are its impact on the character and landscape of the Conservation Area.

6.2 Demolition within a conservation area is generally discourage unless an exception can be proved. This is because a gap within the conservation area is unlikely to be justified as "preserve or enhance the character or appearance" of such areas. Replacement building or carefully designed surface and boundary treatment may be able to mitigate the negative impact on visual amenities but the demolition would still needs to be justified against section 7.32.2 of the Strategic Plan.

6.3 In terms of its current condition. A structures report have been submitted. The report finds that the condition of the buildings are deteriorating due to a combination of the reasons and significant intervention required to ensure its structural safety. The report also find west portion the structure are beyond economic repair and therefore should be demolished while the east portion should be made stable and secure demotion is not practical or safe. It is also safe to induce from the report that continue use of the site is impractical.

6.4 In terms of its historical value. There is no significance in the buildings themselves. However, the void left after demolition will negatively impact the area in general.

6.5 There is no evidence of maintenance or maintenance attempt of the site being submitted as part of the application.

6.6 There is no evidence being submitted regarding attempt to reuse the site. The site is within an area designated as Predominantly Residential. Although the existing use could be considered as industrial/office, there is no evidence showing it will still be viable in the future.

6.7 A summary of findings above would reach the conclusion the demolition of these building are principally acceptable as it is not structurally sound to retain, nor viable to reuse.

6.8 The assessment then turns to whether the mitigation measures proposed after the demolition is acceptable. As the amended plan process shows, the initial proposal of mesh fencing is not acceptable in terms of its visual impact as the whole site is visible by the public and the industrial appearance does not fit in with the residential features in the adjacent area. The

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amended plan utilise the existing boundary wall and maintained a partial outline of the buildings and is therefore considered to preserve the character and appearance of the area.

7.0 CONCLUSION 7.1 The proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2, Environment Policy 35 and Environment Policy 39 of the Strategic Plan and Planning Policy Statement 1/01. Therefore, it is recommended for an approval.

8.0 INTEREST PERSON STATUS 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019, the following persons are automatically interested persons: (a) the applicant (including an agent acting on their behalf); (b) any Government Department that has made written representations that the Department considers material; (c) the Highways Division of the Department of Infrastructure; (d) Manx National Heritage where it has made written representations that the Department considers material; (e) Manx Utilities where it has made written representations that the Department considers material; (f) the local authority in whose district the land which the subject of the application is situated; and (g) a local authority adjoining the authority referred to in paragraph (f) where that adjoining authority has made written representations that the Department considers material.

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 above who should 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 and that in making this decision the Officer has agreed the recommendation in relation to who should be afforded Interested Person Status.

Decision Made : Permitted

Date: 07.05.2021

Determining officer

Signed : C BALMER

Chris Balmer

Principal Planner

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