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20/01301/C Page 1 of 5
PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Application No. : 20/01301/C Applicant : Thomas & Rosemary Waterworth Proposal : Change of use from light industrial to an art/pottery studio Site Address : Unit 1 Old Gas Works Mill Road Peel Isle Of Man
Principal Planner: Miss S E Corlett Photo Taken : Site Visit : Expected Decision Level : Planning Committee
Recommendation
Recommended Decision:
Permitted Date of Recommendation: 14.12.2020 __
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. This approval relates to the use of the defined site as an art studio including the delivery of education relating to the art function.
Reason: to clarify the extent of the planning approval.
This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The application is considered to accord with General Policy 2, Environment Policies 10, 13 and 22 and Business Policies 1 and 5 and Transport Policy 7 of the Strategic Plan and the Peel Local Plan of 1989.
Plans/Drawings/Information;
This approval relates to drawings C-10-01, C-10-03 and the floor plans all received on 4th November, 2020.
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Interested Person Status - Additional Persons
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Officer’s Report
THIS APPLICATION IS REFERRED TO THE PLANNING COMMITTEE AS THE PROPOSED USE OR PARTS THEREOF COULD BE CONSIDERED CONTRARY TO THE LAND USE DESIGNATION IN THE PEEL LOCAL PLAN
THE SITE 1.1 The whole site is one which has recently been re-developed from a gas works to industrial and office premises with associated parking, including a few spaces for newly built dwellings alongside the site. The site sits opposite the House of Manannan museum and its associated car park and alongside the site on the same side of the road is the food park and fishyard. Immediately adjacent to the site is a residential property which was approved as part of the redevelopment of the gasworks site - 14/00928/B. Beyond this are other residential properties either side of Station Road and East Quay marks the start of a number of shops, cafes, restaurants and bars with a few, older, industrial operations - car repairs and sales and depots.
1.2 The site accommodates two buildings - a large modern industrial building which is subdivided internally into four units and another, smaller building which is being re-built as an office (18/00137/B). The approval plans show a mezzanine level over half of each unit. The application concerns the northern most of the four units within the main building and six parking spaces are shown allocated to this unit.
1.3 This unit was the subject of a successful application for its use as a launderette and laundry (19/00313/C). 19/00327/C proposed the use of the unit alongside as a personal training gym and was also approved.
THE PROPOSAL 2.1 The building was approved as one for storage and distribution (Class 6) (14/00930/B) and is nearing completion. Proposed is the change of use of one quarter of the building - unit 1 to an clay-based art studio including pottery making.
2.2 Internally the ground floor will be subdivided into an open area of 112 sq m with a separate partitioned area for a kiln to the rear of this. Over the northern half of the building will be a mezzanine as approved and this is shown as accommodating a seating area, kitchen and office. Toilets are on the ground floor.
2.3 No external changes are proposed.
2.4 The applicant explains that opening times would be Wednesday to Saturday 1300-1700 hrs with a maximum of 2 staff. Outside of these hours workshops may be held between 0900 - 1300hrs with occasional evening events between 1900-2200 plus occasional all day Sunday events. The use will include the production of clay products as well as educational workshops and a small amount of retail for materials.
PLANNING POLICY 3.1 The site lies within an area designated on the Peel Local Plan as Predominantly Industrial. The planning approval for the building (14/00930/B) described the proposed development as the erection of a block of four storage/distribution units although the amount of parking exceeded the amount required for that use. The front of the site lies within an area of high tidal and river flood risk. This does not appear to extend as far into the site as the building.
3.2 Business Policy 5 of the Strategic Plan states that land designated for industrial use will be approved for only industrial, storage and distribution operations and in particular, retail use will not be generally acceptable unless they are of a particular nature which justifies an industrial
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location. Business Policy 1 encourages the growth of employment opportunities throughout the Island provided that the development complies with the other objectives of the Plan.
3.4 Parking standards in the Strategic Plan indicate that industrial development is to have one parking space per 50 sq m gross of floorspace: storage and distribution should have one space per 100 sq m gross space. The unit has around 165 sq m of ground floor area and 93sq m on the mezzanine floor.
3.5 General Policy 2, whilst applicable to development which is consistent with the land use designation, sets out general standards of development which should be applied to all new proposals and requires, inter alia, that the development would not result in adverse highway safety or parking issues, the character of the area and the amenities of those in adjacent residential accommodation as well as flood risk. Transport Policy 7 requires that adequate parking is provided and Environment Policy 22 also protects the amenities of those in existing property from environmental impacts such as pollution, emissions, vibrations, odour, noise or light pollution.
3.6 Environment Policies 10 and 13 presume against development which would result in increased flood risk.
3.7 Finally, the Government undertook a review of the amount of employment land available in the Island in 2015, updating it in 2017. Both reports conclude that there is no issue with the supply of employment land in the north and west, noting specifically in 2017 that "existing allocations remain sufficient to meet future demand in the South, West and North."
PLANNING HISTORY 4.1 The relevant previous applications are referred to above.
REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 Highway Services do not object, stating that there is adequate parking taking into account the amount of actual usable space and the sustainable location together with other available parking in the area (25.11.20).
ASSESSMENT 6.1 The unit is in an area designated as industrial and the proposed use involves the "making of any article or of part of any article and/or the altering, repairing, ornamenting, finishing, cleaning, washing, adapting for sale " of any article so the proposed use is consistent with the land use designation in that respect. However the proposed use includes other functions.
6.2 The nature of how this use will be delivered perhaps differs slightly from the traditional or literal interpretation of industrial use so it is appropriate that planning approval has been sought which will legitimise the workshops/educational elements of the work. As such, the proposal involves a sui generis use of the site as the proposed mix does not fall within any Use Class within the 2019 Order (or any other).
6.3 The issues to consider in this case therefore are whether the proposed use is appropriate given the land use designation, whether there would be any adverse impact on the town centre and on the living conditions of those in adjacent residential property as well as those in the other adjacent units within the site and whether there will be any impact on highway safety or increased flood risk as a result of the proposed change of use. In all of these it is relevant that the site has approval for light industrial use of the buildings and also that a gym and laundry/launderette have also been approved here.
Land use
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6.4 For the reasons set out in paragraphs 6.1 and 6.2 the proposed use is considered to be acceptable. In addition, it is relevant that the site is close to the town centre, close to other community and commercial facilities and centres of population, not to mention public transport. If children are to be educated at the site, it is likely that parents or carers could drop them off and shop or utilise the various leisure facilities in the town, supporting the viability of the town centre.
Impact on the town centre 6.5 As noted above, the site is close to the town centre and it is considered that the proposed use would have a positive and complimentary impact on the viability and vitality of the town centre.
Impact on the living conditions of those in adjacent properties 6.6 There are residential properties alongside and to the rear. The approved industrial use of the site would give rise to greater impacts in terms of the amount and nature of vehicular traffic and also potentially noise and dust. What is proposed is unlikely to be noisy, dusty or unneighbourly and thus is considered acceptable in this respect even if carried out on every day of the week and for the hours stated. Due to the approved use it is not considered necessary to attach any condition which restricts the hours of operation of the business.
Impact on highway safety 6.7 As noted by Highway Services, the site is sustainably located and there is ample parking both within the site and in the surrounding area which can accommodate the parking requirement resulting from the proposed use and how it would operate. It is relevant that any weekend and evening operation will take place when the other units and premises nearby - for example the House of Manannan and the building company - are not in use so parking will be more plentiful then.
Impact on flood risk 6.8 Finally, whilst the site lies within an area liable to flood risk, the proposed use is no more likely to be affected by such risk than is the lawful and approved uses of the site and is not considered a high risk use type. The building does not appear to be within the flood risk area.
CONCLUSION 7.1 The application is considered to accord with General Policy 2, Environment Policies 10, 13 and 22 and Business Policies 1 and 5 and Transport Policy 7 of the Strategic Plan and the Peel Local Plan of 1989.
INTERESTED 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 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
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o whether there are other persons to those listed in Article 4(2) who should be given Interested Person Status.
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I confirm that this decision has been made by the Planning Committee in accordance with the authority afforded to that body by the appropriate DEFA Delegation and that in making this decision the Committee has agreed the recommendation in relation to who should be afforded Interested Person Status.
Decision Made : ...Permitted... Committee Meeting Date:...04.01.2021
Signed :...S CORLETT... Presenting Officer
Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason was required (included as supplemental paragraph to the officer report).
Signatory to delete as appropriate YES/NO See below
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