Loading document...
==== PAGE 1 ====
20/01549/B Page 1 of 6
PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Application No. : 20/01549/B Applicant : Northville Estates Limited Proposal : Conversion of building to residential accommodation with associated first floor terrace Site Address : Baker's Cottage Rear Of 31 Parliament Street Ramsey Isle Of Man IM8 1AT
Planning Officer: Mrs Vanessa Porter Photo Taken :
Site Visit :
Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation
Recommendation
Recommended Decision:
Permitted Date of Recommendation: 17.03.2021 __
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. No development shall commence until a schedule of materials and finishes and samples of the materials to be used in the construction of the external surfaces, including roofs, have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Department. The development shall not be carried out unless in accordance with the approved details.
Reason: In the interests of the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area.
C 3. All external facing and roofing materials shall remain as shown on the proposed photo image date stamped as having been received 23rd December 2020. No new types of materials shall be added to the external elevations of the development, hereby approved.
Reason: In the interests of the character and appearance of the site and surrounding area.
C 4. Prior to occupation the flood risk mitigation as shown in the Supplementary Information and details on flood resistance and resilience measures date stamped as having been received 1st March 2020 must be fully complied with and retained thereafter.
Reason: For the future safety of the occupants of the property.
This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason.
==== PAGE 2 ====
20/01549/B Page 2 of 6
The proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2 and Environment Policy 35 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and therefore acceptable.
Plans/Drawings/Information;
This decision relates to the following plans and drawings, date stamped received on 23rd December 2020: o Drawing No. 225/001 o Drawing No. 225/010 o Drawing No. 225/021 o Proposed and Existing photographs
This decision also related to the Supplementary information and details on flood resistance and resilience measures received on the 1st March 2021. __
Interested Person Status - Additional Persons
None __
Officer’s Report
THE APPLICATION SITE 1.1 The application site is a small warehouse/store which is situated to the rear of 31 Parliament Street and is accessed through the car park in association with 29 Parliament Street.
1.2 The building is a traditionally constructed in Manx Stone with traditional vernacular and window proportions. The building features a lean-to roof and is attached to the boundary wall at the rear of No.37 Parliament St, 'Ramsey Warehouse.'
THE PROPOSAL 2.1 The current planning application seeks approval to alter and extend the existing structure to provide a residential dwelling.
2.2 To the ground floor the proposal will create two bedrooms, bathroom and storage to the ground floor level with the addition of a front door to the northern elevation with the removal of the existing door and installation of new window.
2.3 To the first floor level there is a modern extension proposed which will increase the overall height of the building by 0.7m (existing 5.3m, proposed 6.0m), which will provide an open plan kitchen, dining and living room. Also proposed is the installation of a wooden roof terrace which will provide an outside area for the occupants.
2.4 The proposed new first floor level will be mainly glass to the east and north elevations which will have anthracite grey frames. The proposed deck will be 150mm wide dark grey vertical and horizontal timber boards and the proposed roof will be slate to match the existing.
2.5 The ground floor level and part of the first floor level front elevation is to be kept in Manx stonework.
PLANNING HISTORY 3.1 There are two previous applications which are in conjunction with each other 18/00769/B (Alterations, partial demolition of existing store building and installation of double doors (in association with 18/00797/CON)) & 18/00797/CON (Registered Building consent for alterations,
==== PAGE 3 ====
20/01549/B Page 3 of 6
partial demolition of existing store building and installation of double doors (in association with 18/00796/B)), both of which were approved.
PLANNING POLICY 4.1 The site lies within an area zoned as "Mixed Use, Town Centre" on the Ramsey Local Plan 1998, Map 2 (South), the property is within the Ramsey Conservation Area and also within a Flood Zone. The Ramsey Local Plan 1998 has two policies which are relevant to this application R/TC/P1 & R/TC/P3.
4.2 R/TC/P1 of the Ramsey Local Plan 1998 states: "There will be a general presumption in favour of retention of retail uses at ground floor level in the main shopping streets (Peel Street, Bourne Place, Market Hill, Market Place, (West), Parliament Street (excluding Auckland Terrace), East Street, Parliament Square (East Side). Office uses (including finance related establishments) at ground floor level will not be permitted to occupy more than 30% of the street frontage in any one block between public and vehicular highways in these streets".
4.3 R/TC/P3 of the Ramsey Local Plan 1998 states, "The use of upper floors as retail units, offices and apartments shall be encouraged particularly where premises are currently vacant."
4.4 Given the nature of the application it is appropriate to consider General Policy 2, Environment Policy 3.
4.5 General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 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: 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; n) is designed having due regard to best practice in reducing energy consumption."
4.6 Due to the application site being within a Conservation Are, and as such Environment Policy 35 is a crucial policy: "Within Conservation Areas, the Department will permit only development which would preserve or enhance the character of appearance of the area, and will ensure that the special features contributing to the character and quality are protected against inappropriate development." This echoes the provision of Planning Policy Statement 1/01, policy CA/2, which 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.
REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 Highway Services have considered the application and "Do not Oppose" stating, "After reviewing this application, Highway Services find it to have no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network efficiency and/or parking. Additionally, consideration should be given to the provision for storage for bicycles and an electric vehicle charging point to aid sustainable travel and low emission objectives" (27.01.21).
5.2 Ramsey Town Commissioners have considered the proposal and have no objection stating, "Whilst Ramsey Town Commissioners have no objection to this proposal, they wish to submit an observation. The property is within a flood risk area and this needs to be considered as part of the design process" (21.01.21).
5.3 DOI Flood Risk Management Division have considered the application and "Oppose" stating, "20/01549/B proposes the conversion of the existing building in to residential accommodation within a high tidal flood risk zone. Residential accommodation is classed as more vulnerable land use in regards to flood risk. The flood resilient measures proposed are
==== PAGE 4 ====
20/01549/B Page 4 of 6
not sufficient justification to permit. The applicant makes mention of the Department of Infrastructure's intention to build a flood defence but applications are reviewed on the as built situation." (9.02.21)
ASSESSMENT 6.1 The fundamental issues to consider in the assessment of this planning application are; (i) the impact of the proposed development on the character of area and (ii) whether the works proposed preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the Ramsey Conservation Area.
PRINCIPLE 6.2 Firstly when looking at the principle of the proposal, in terms of the land use designation of the area as "Mixed Use," within the Ramsey Local Plan 1998 Written Statement it makes reference to Tower Street having a land use of "Predominantly Housing" as such there is a presumption in favour of any residential development. However, this is not an automatic reason to allow development as further material planning matters as indicated above need to be considered.
CHARACTER AND APPEARANCE 6.3 When looking at the character and appearance of the proposed property, the architect has tried to keep as much of the original structure as possible with only the glazed upper half and the garden terrace being new items.
6.4 The glazed upper half of the property will be adding a suitable modern addition to the overall structure but separating the old of the new, the roof being slate would also help the property to mould into the existing properties surrounding it.
6.5 Whilst the proposed decked area does not fit within the area it is proposed it provided a much needed shielded area in the open for the occupants of the property, with it providing a garden of sorts. The proposed decked area is also an advantage due to the area underneath being used for items such as bin storage.
6.6 Overall due to the location of the property whilst views can be seen from several areas these would be fleeting and generally not from a public vantage point as such the overall impact on the Conservation Area and overall streetscene is minimal.
NEIGHBOURING AMENITY 6.7 The proposed property itself is situated within an area which is zoned as "Mixed Use, Town Centre" which means that there are a variety of uses surrounding the proposed property from retail to offices.
6.8 In proposals such as these, concern can lie with the potential to cause disruptions to the immediate and adjoining neighbouring properties. In terms of differentiating an office from residential it is often difficult to define how each would behave. Generally office hours are between the times of 9am to 5pm with the occasional office working out of these hours due to the service they provide. Offices are generally quiet with the potential to not be disruptive. When a property is someone's home they have the potential to be home more, could invite friends or family around and have parties which have the potential to be noisy. In general the majority of people tend to behave well and raise no concerns, although there will always be a percentage that may not behave.
6.9 Another item to look at is the general noise and disturbance of the shops surrounding the proposed property. In the close vicinity there are takeaways, supermarkets and bars, all of which would cause their own noise. Whilst this has the potential to be disruptive to the occupants of the proposed property, there are several shops within the area which have living accommodation above them. There is also the factor that anyone who would be occupying the
==== PAGE 5 ====
20/01549/B Page 5 of 6
proposed property would know that there would be a certain amount of underlying noise due to its location.
HIGHWAY SAFETY 6.10 The main aspects when looking at whether there would be an impact upon highway safety at the site is firstly if there is a suitable amount of parking available and whether the application would impose on the existing car parking area. In the first instance Highway Services have written in to state that they "find it to have no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network efficiency and/or parking."
6.11 When looking at the information provided the proposal supplies two parking spaces one which is partly within the property boundary and one which is situated within the existing car parking area to the front of the property. Both of the car parking spaces would be suitable enough to provide the requirement under Appendix 7.
6.12 It is also relevant to note that the proposed property is situated within Ramsey Town Centre and as such there are relevant bus links at a short walking distance and all the local amenities required.
FLOOD ZONE 6.13 When looking at the comments made directly by the DOI Flood Risk Management Division they state that "residential accommodation is classed as more vulnerable land use in regards to flood risk." Whilst this may be the case when looking at the existing use of the building it is relevant to note that the flood risk in 1 in 100 (around a 1% chance of flooding yearly), with this in mind the overall redevelopment of a redundant building would be more of an advantage to the area with regards to the overall streetscene and Conservation Area that it would outweigh the possible flood risk.
6.14 The building itself as stated above is within a High Risk Flood Zone (1 in 100) and as such there needs to be suitable mitigation works done to the property encase there is a flood. The proposed flood risk mitigation stated "The proposed refurbishment would include resistance and resilience measures such as those identified in the UK's DEFRA document, 'Homeowner's Guide to flood resilience measures'. Due to the vagueness of this statement additional details were requested to state what mitigation works were proposed.
6.15 Further information was received which had several flood risk mitigation works proposed including the positioning of electrical items 1m above the ground floor level. To make sure that the mitigation within the supplementary document are taken up a condition should be attached to the application to state the works need to be done as per the document.
OTHER ISSUES 6.16 When looking at the application itself there was thoughts that the removal of the Permitted Development rights would be required to make sure that the overall character and appearance of the property is not altered but the property is within the Ramsey Conservation Area and as such anything to do with the character and appearance of the property would require Planning Permission.
CONCLUSION 7.1 For the above reasons the proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2 and Environment Policy 35 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and therefore acceptable.
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);
==== PAGE 6 ====
20/01549/B Page 6 of 6
(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 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 the Head of Development Management 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 : 23.03.2021
Determining officer
Signed : S BUTLER
Stephen Butler
Head of Development Management
Customer note
This copy of the officer report reflects the content of the file copy and has been produced in this form for the benefit of our online services/customers and archive records.
Copyright in submitted documents remains with their authors. Request removal