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                                      21/00137/B                                     Page  1  of  6

PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Application No. : 21/00137/B Applicant : Mrs Susan Jane Alexander Proposal : Replacement of existing garage / store, erection of replacement building to create ancillary living accommodation and the additional use for tourist accommodation Site Address : Tremesare Lodge Blackberry Lane Douglas Isle Of Man IM2 4PD

Planning Officer: Mr Peiran Shen Photo Taken :

Site Visit : Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation

Recommendation

Recommended Decision:

Permitted Date of Recommendation: 08.10.2021 __

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. The front door should be installed according to drawing no. 1550.1 as having been received on 13th August 2021.

Reason: To enhance the character and street scene of the area.

C 3. The replacement one-bedroom flat can only be used as ancillary accommodation to Tremesare Lodge and/or tourist accommodation. The flat cannot be rented out or sold separately from the entire estate.

Reason: Any changes outside the approved use would require a separate planning approval.

This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The application is considered to comply with General Policy 2 and Transport Policy 7 of the Strategic Plan and the principles laid down in the Residential Design Guide (2021).

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Plans/Drawings/Information;

This approval relates to the documents, location plan, photo and drawing no. 1550.1, 1550.2 Revision 1 as having been received on 13/08/2021 and drawing no. 1550.3 as having been received on 21/07/2021. __

Interested Person Status - Additional Persons

It is recommended that the following Government Departments should be given Interested Person Status on the basis that they have made written submissions relating to planning considerations:

DoI Flood Risk Management Division

It is recommended that the owners/occupiers of the following properties should be given Interested Person Status as they are considered to have sufficient interest in the subject matter of the application to take part in any subsequent proceedings and are not mentioned in Article 4(2):

Owners/Occupiers of Cedar Lodge, Blackberry Lane, Douglas

as they satisfy all of the requirements of paragraph 2 of the Department's Operational Policy on Interested Person Status. __

Officer’s Report

1.0 THE SITE

1.1 The application site is the residential curtilage of Tremasare Lodge, Blackberry Lane Douglas, an estate located on the west of Blackberry Lane. Its driveway is connected to the Lane close to its junction with Summer Hill.

1.2 The drive way is L shaped. At the end of the driveway there is another estate named Cedar Lodge. Tremasare Lodge and Cedar Lodge shares the driveway. There are additional driveways solely used by Tremasare Lodge and the parking show this can accommodate 7 parking spaces.

1.3 The estate consists of a main dwelling a number of outbuildings. There is a single- storey double garage located on the north at the corner of the driveway. It is attached with a two storey outbuilding named "the observatory". The parking plan shows one parking space outside the garage.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL

2.1 The proposed work is the demolition of the existing garage and the erection of a replacement building to create ancillary living accommodation and additional use as tourist accommodation. The replacement building will be a single-story one-bedroom flat.

2.2 The proposal originally was only for the use as ancillary living accommodation but the tourism use was added by the requested from the applicant.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY

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3.1 Alterations and conversion of outbuildings to form ancillary living accommodation was APPROVED under PA 12/00699/B. This is the outbuilding connected with the main dwelling. An amended application for the approval was APPROVED under PA 12/01591/B.

4.0 PLANNING POLICY

4.1 In terms of local policy, the site lies within an area designated as Predominantly Residential in the Area Plan for the East. Part of the site is within a Low Likelihood Surface Water Flood Risk Area.

4.2 In terms of strategic plan 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: (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; (h) provides satisfactory amenity standards in itself, including where appropriate safe and convenient access for all highway users, together with adequate parking, servicing and manoeuvring space; (i) does not have an unacceptable effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways; (j) can be provided with all necessary services."

4.4 "8.12.1 Extensions to Dwellings in built-up areas or sites designated for residential use: As a general policy, in built-up areas not controlled by Conservation Area or Registered Building policies, there will be a general presumption in favour of extensions to an existing property where such extensions would not have an adverse impact on either adjacent property or the surrounding area in general."

4.5 Transport Policy 7 states: "The Department will require that in all new development, parking provision must be in accordance with the Department's current standards."

4.6 Appendix 7.1: "High levels of car ownership have led to an increase in the level of parking expected for residential development, and outside of town centre locations, these standards should not be relaxed. New-built residential development should be provided with two parking spaces per dwelling, at least one of which should be within the curtilage of the dwelling and behind the front of the dwelling ... the Department will consider reducing this requirement having regard to: (a) the location of the housing relative to public transport, employment, and public amenities; (b) the size of the dwelling; (d) the impact on the character and appearance of the surrounding area."

4.7 Appendix 7.1 continues: "Where new dwellings are created by the conversion of existing buildings, parking space should be formed by the clearance of outbuildings and low-grade annexes or 'outlets' if it is reasonable and practicable so to do. However, in general, the need to find a use for redundant

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buildings which are in sound condition will outweigh the drawback of any shortfall in parking provision."

4.8 Appendix 7.6 states typical residential dwelling should have "1 space for 1 bedroom; 2 spaces for 2 or more bedrooms". The same requirement applies to apartments.

4.9 Residential Design Guidance (July 2021) provides advice on the design of new houses and extensions to an existing dwelling as well as how to assess the impact of such development on the living conditions of those in adjacent residential property.

4.10 RDG 4.2 "Potential Visual Impact of an Extension upon the Existing House" states a pitched roof is preferred to a flat roof, especially when it's publicly visible. However, an exception can possibly be made when the existing property has a flat/low pitched roof design.

4.11 RDG 4.8 Extension to "Side Elevations" sets out key considerations for side elevation extension. These include the potential visual appearance of the extension within the street scene and the individual dwelling as well as the impact on the amenities of those in neighbouring properties. These impacts can be regulated by designing with the right location, size, and architecture style. The section also specifically mentioned that detached/semi- detached dwellings should avoid a terraced appearance due to two extensions being placed too close to each other.

4.12 RDG 5 sets out key considerations regarding architectural details. These include window details and external finishing. The general idea is that the extension should have a similar style with the main dwelling for a coherent appearance unless the clash between modern and traditional design can be handled with elegance.

4.13 RDG 7 sets out key considerations regarding the impact on neighbouring properties. These include the potential loss of light/overshadowing, overbearing impact upon outlook and overlooking resulting in a loss of privacy.

5.0 REPRESENTATION

5.1 Douglas Borough Council has no objection to this application (01/09/2021).

5.2 DoI Highway Services does not oppose this application (11/03/2021). The comment states there is no significant negative impact upon highway safety or network efficiency.

5.3 DoI Highway Services, continuously does not oppose this application after the additional submission of a parking plan and the revision to the red line boundary (27/07/2021, 16/08/2021).

5.4 DoI Flood Risk Management Division states there is no flood risk management interest in this application (30/03/2021).

5.5 The Isle of Man Victorian Society commented (12/03/2021) and recommend that the proposed front door should be in Victorian style.

5.6 The owners/occupiers of Cedar Lodge, Blackberry Lane, Douglas wrote in objection to this application (15/04/2021). The comment states that the site current already often have too many cars, generated mostly due to the outbuildings, which has created a parking issues and often prevents them from access their property. The comment believes that the proposal would worsen the existing parking issues and violate their rights of access to their property.

5.7 The owners/occupiers of Cedar Lodge, Blackberry Lane, Douglas wrote in objection to this application (15/04/2021) following up the previous comment. The comment reiterates that

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the proposal would impair their right of access, especial for service vehicles. The comment also states that the proposal could worsen the existing flooding issue.

5.8 The owners/occupiers of Cedar Lodge, Blackberry Lane, Douglas wrote in objection to this application (18/08/2021) after the submission of parking plan and the amended description and plan was submitted. The comment states that the space in front of the proposal is vital for the access of service vehicles to their property and there has been incidents where the space was used as parking and blocked delivery truck from accessing it.

6.0 ASSESSMENT

6.1 The main considerations for the developments are four fold: its impact on the appearance of the property itself, on the character and landscape of the area, on parking provision and the amenities of the neighbours. Then, the assessment will be made for it to be used additionally as a tourist accommodation.

Visual Appearance 6.2 The proposed replacement building will have a similar appearance to the Observatory. The agent has revised the front door to a four panel one to respect its age style, following the recommendation by the Victorian Society. A condition should be attached to ensure its installtion to improve the visual appearance of the area. Although the use of a glazed French door is not idea, there is an improvement in general compare to the existing rundown garage. Therefore, it is considered that visual impact on the property itself and the character and landscape of the area is acceptable.

Parking 6.3 There is a main dwelling, a previously approved ancillary accommodation, combining with the proposal, there is a need of 5 parking spaces in total within the site. This number has been met in the submitted parking plan. Therefore, it is considered that the impact on parking is acceptable.

Neighbouring Amenities 6.4 As the proposal is only slightly increased in size, it is considered that there is no additional impact on the neighbouring amenities in terms of overbearing, overshadowing and overlooking.

6.5 Access issue has been highlighted by the comment. At the moment, there is no planning conditions that prevent the hard surface in front of the garage being used for parking. As the driveway is private, planning or DoI has no power in regulating parking on a private driveway, even though the proposed use an ancillary accommodation will increase the chance of the space being used for parking, there is nothing to prevent this from occurring currently. The blocking of a right of access is a civil matter and not within the control of the planning system.

6.6 The area of hardened surface does not change. Therefore, it is considered that there is no impact on surface water run-off.

Tourist Accommodation 6.7 It is difficult to assess how an individual person would behave whether they be a tourist or permanent resident. As a tourist, a person may be out a lot of the time, but may also have greater late nights and be disruptive on return. Both tourist and permanent residents have incentives for organising gatherings which can easily be carried out till late night. In general terms, however, with a unit of this size it is not considered that the any associated general disturbance would raise no concerns. Therefore it is unlikely for this change of use to have a significant impact upon the living conditions of the neighbouring properties.

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6.8 The property has provided sufficient number of parking spaces, both for the main dwelling and tourist accommodation itself. Therefore, the possibility of impact parking is small and is considered acceptable.

7.0 CONCLUSION

7.1 The proposal is considered to comply with General Policy 2 and Transport Policy 7 of the Strategic Plan and Residential Design Guide. Therefore, it is recommended for an approval.

8.0 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 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: 12.10.2021

Determining officer Signed : A MORGAN Abigail Morgan

Principal Planner

Customer note

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