6 November 2003 · Minister for Local Government and the Environment (following Planning Committee and Inspector J Trevor Graham)
Fields 214058/214059, (County Series Field 1369) Clenagh Road Sandygate Ramsey
Vivienne Pixton applied to erect a 'log cabin' - described as a solid timber garden shed for storing weaving materials and loom use by her and her brother with learning difficulties - on her 0.8ha allotment field adjacent to Clenagh Road.
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The site is in open countryside outside any development zone, contrary to countryside protection policies preventing non-agricultural development.
no objections, acceptable subject to condition preventing living accommodation
no views, no adverse traffic impacts
supports for benefit to appellant's brother with learning difficulties
Highways Division raised no objections due to no adverse traffic impacts. Jurby Parish Commissioners requested no living accommodation use if approved; SPMCE initially objected on landscape grounds but later withdrew.
Key concern: erect a log cabin in an area of high landscape value with danger of caravan/camping site
Department of Transport Highways Division
No ObjectionThe Highways Division of the Department of Transport has no views on the following application, the application having been considered and having no adverse traffic impacts.; The Highways Division does not wish to make further representation to the forthcoming review, beyond the response in the initial letter.
Jurby Parish Commissioners
Conditional No Objectionshould the application receive approval, a condition be added that at a later date or at no time in the future the log cabin is not to be used for living accommodation.; my Commissioners do not wish to put forward any further views or comments at this stage, but they request that their previous views and comments are taken into consideration
Conditions requested: a condition be added that at a later date or at no time in the future the log cabin is not to be used for living accommodation
Society for the Preservation of the Manx Countryside and Environment
No CommentI appreciate that our concerns about the future of the land at Sandygate are unfounded.
Society for the Preservation of the Manx Countryside and Environment
ObjectionThis application is to erect a log cabin in an area of high landscape value. As such it has scenic significance and in our opinion there is a danger of a caravan/camping site emanating in the future. This causes us concern.
The original application (03/00874/B) for erection of a log cabin was refused by the Planning Committee on 31 October 2003 and confirmed on review on 22 January 2004, citing inappropriate development in the countryside and setting an undesirable precedent. The appellant argued the cabin was essentially a garden shed for storage and recreational weaving for herself and her brother with learning difficulties, supported by an existing permitted hut nearby, alternative screened location, and assurances against residential use. The Council defended the refusal emphasizing countryside protection policies and precedent risks. The inspector acknowledged personal circumstances and low visibility but concluded no agricultural justification existed, the site was not intensively cultivated, and approval would harm the rural environment and set a damaging precedent. The inspector recommended the appeal be dismissed.
Precedent Value
This appeal demonstrates that Isle of Man inspectors strictly enforce countryside protection policies, requiring clear functional necessity tied to agriculture or countryside uses; personal or recreational justifications, even sympathetic, carry minimal weight against precedent and environmental harm risks. Future applicants must evidence intensive land use and direct countryside-related need, not mere storage or hobbies.
Inspector: J Trevor Graham
