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                                      22/00238/B                                     Page  1  of  4

PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

Application No. : 22/00238/B Applicant : Mr & Mrs James Simpson Proposal : Erection of a single storey stand alone sauna building Site Address : Ballacaroon West Baldwin Road Mount Rule Isle Of Man IM4 4HW

Principal Planner: Mr Chris Balmer Photo Taken :

Site Visit :

Expected Decision Level : Officer Delegation

Recommendation

Recommended Decision:

Permitted Date of Recommendation: 25.04.2022 __

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.

This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The planning application would be an acceptable form of development that has been designed to ensure that it would not visually harm the property or that of the surrounding countryside and would comply with Environmental Policy 1 of the Strategic Plan.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

This approval relates to the submitted documents and drawing all received on 10.03.2022.

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Interested Person Status - Additional Persons

None __

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Officer’s Report

1.0 THE SITE 1.1 The application site currently is the residential curtilage of Ballacaroon, West Baldwin Road, Mount Rule which is a substantial dwelling which has been constructed (now finished) in the last few years. To the north of site is the A23 (West Baldwin Road) and to the west of the site is Mount Rule Equestrian Centre. To the east of the site is an unmade access lane. The application site is approximately 0.5ha in area.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL 2.1 Proposed is the erection of a single storey standalone building which would accommodate a sauna. The building would have a width of 3.6m, a depth of 2.4m and a height of 2.6m.

3.0 PLANNING POLICY 3.1 In terms of local plan policy, the application site is located within a wider area of land that is designated as open space (agricultural) under the Area Plan for the East 2020.

3.2 In terms of strategic plan policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 contains a number of policies that are considered specifically material to the assessment of this current planning application.

3.3 Spatial Policy 5:

New development will be located within the defined settlements. Development will only be permitted in the countryside in accordance with General Policy 3.

3.4 As the land is not zoned for development, General Policy 3 would be applicable, but as this application is for a single storey structure in the garden to an existing residential property, the principles of the following policies are considered applicable;

3.5 Environment Policy 1 The countryside and its ecology will be protected for its own sake. For the purposes of this policy, the countryside comprises all land which is outside the settlements defined in Appendix 3 at A.3.6 or which is not designated for future development on an Area Plan. Development which would adversely affect the countryside will not be permitted unless there is an over- riding national need in land use planning terms which outweighs the requirement to protect these areas and for which there is no reasonable and acceptable alternative."

4.0 PLANNING HISTORY 4.1 18/01060/B - Erection of a dwelling with detached garage. Approved.

4.2 Erection of single storey home gym/yoga studio and garden store - 20/01203/B - APPROVED

5.0 REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 The Braddan Commissioners do not object (30.03.2022).

5.2 Highways Services have commented (24.03.2022) there is not highway implications.

5.3 Forestry Division (DEFA) have no objection (29.03.2022).

6.0 ASSESSMENT 6.1 The fundamental issues to consider in the assessment of this planning application are;

(i) the principle of development;

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(ii) the visual impact of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area.

(i) Principle 6.2 The site is not within any area zoned for development, therefore as per Spatial Policy 5, any development in the countryside must meet the test of General Policy 3. However, as this application is for a garden building within a residential curtilage in the countryside, we must consider the principles of Environment Policy 1 which seeks that any development in the countryside is justified to sufficiently outweigh the presumption to the contrary.

6.3 Visual Impact The design of the proposed building is timber clad in finish and has a similar finished to summerhouses/shed etc which are found with the residential curtilages of most properties throughout the IOM. The design and finish would be appropriate for this type of use and would replicate a large shed in the rear garden and would be read in that context from any vantage point of the highway. To help with the visual amenity the level and scale of planting proposed to the eastern boundary (already in place) will, in time, ensure the lower proportions of east elevation of the property are screened from the Highway giving the property more privacy. Further, the site level falls in this location and therefore the visual impact form the public highway are reduced further, coupled with the fact it is set behind the recent approved gym building. The proposal is considered to be an appropriate form of development within the residential curtilage and having a neutral visual impact on the wider countryside in accordance with EP1.

7.0 CONCLUSION 7.1 The planning application would be an acceptable form of development that has been designed to ensure that it would not visually harm the property or that of the surrounding countryside and would comply with Environmental Policy 1 of the Strategic Plan.

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 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

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decision the Officer has agreed the recommendation in relation to who should be afforded Interested Person Status.

Decision Made : Permitted

Date: 28.04.2022

Determining officer

Signed : J SINGLETON

Jason Singleton

Principal Planner

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.