**Document:** DEC Officer Report **Application:** 20/01433/B — Erection of light industrial, storage or distribution unit. **Decision:** Permitted **Decision Date:** 2021-02-17 **Parish:** Braddan **Document Type:** report / officer_report **Source:** https://planningportal.im/a/6940-braddan-white-hoe-industrial-units-light-storage/documents/925858 --- # DEC Officer Report ## PLANNING OFFICER REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS **Application No.:** 20/01433/B **Applicant:** Mr Peter Christian **Proposal:** Erection of light industrial, storage or distribution unit. **Site Address:** White Hoe Industrial Units White Hoe Industrial Estate Old Castletown Road Douglas Isle Of Man Principal Planner: Mr Chris Balmer **Expected Decision Level:** Officer Delegation **Recommended Decision:** Permitted **Date of Recommendation:** 08.02.2021 _________________________________________________________________ ## 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 development hereby approved shall not be occupied or operated until the parking and turning areas have been provided in accordance with the approved plans. Such areas shall not be used for any purpose other than the parking and turning of vehicles associated with the development and shall remain free of obstruction for such use at all times. Reason: To ensure that sufficient provision is made for off-street parking and turning of vehicles in the interests of highway safety. - C 3. The units shall be used only for Use Class 2.2 (Light Industrial and Research and Development) and/or Use Class 2.4 (Storage or Distribution) of the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 2019 or equivalent classes in any replacement to that order. REASON: To safeguard the character of the area and planning approval only sought these uses and therefore considered on these basis only. - C 4. No unit hereby approved shall have a mezzanine floor installed which is greater than 50% of the ground floor area of that unit. Reason: to ensure that there is sufficient parking in accordance with the Strategic Plan (2016) parking standards. This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. It is concluded that the planning application is in accordance with aforementioned General Policies of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and would have no adverse impact upon public or private amenities. Plans/Drawings/Information; This approval relates to the submitted documents and drawings EBH-20-01, EBH-20-02, EBH20-03 and EBH-20-04, all received on 12th December 2020. _______________________________________________________________ Interested Person Status – Additional Persons None _____________________________________________________________________________ ## Officer’s Report 1.0 APPLICATION SITE - 1.1 The application site is a piece of land which lies within the White Hoe Industrial estate on the northern side of the A25 Old Castletown Road. The site lies lower than the public highway and is accessed therefrom by an estate road which runs from the west of the IRIS pump station and to the east of an existing car park and three existing industrial units whose ridges run west to east. The site is part of a wider area which runs north as far as the steam railway line. - 1.2 Within the estate there are already a number of industrial buildings varying dimensions, there is a common theme in colour and design of the buildings. 2.0 THE PROPOSAL - 2.1 Proposed is the erection of a light industrial building (554sqm + 50% of floor area for mezzanine 227sqm - total 831sqm ) which accommodates 6 individual units within and with a total of 28 parking spaces. The building would measure 31.5m by 19m. The building will be finished in light grey/silver cladding and dark blue trim. The building is proposed to be used for light industrial or storage and distribution purposes. 3.0 PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 This application site has not been the subject of any previous planning applications that are considered specifically material to the assessment of this current planning application. - 3.2 Within the immediate area/ estate there have been a number of approvals for the erection of light industrial buildings. 16/00649/B - Erection of an industrial building. Approved 14/00948/B - Construction of a light industrial or storage and distribution unit. Approved. 13/00334/C - Change of use from light industrial to a gymnasium - Approved. 11/00754/B - Erection of an industrial/storage building with forecourt car parking - Approved. 10/01257/B - Retention of a building comprising of 4 units to be used for light industrial or storage / distribution purposes, and the retention of a hard standing area for additional car parking. Approved. 10/01256/C - Change of use from light industrial or storage / distribution to warehousing and retail of building materials. Approved 07/01212/B - Creation of an Industrial Estate layout. Approved. ## - 4.0 PLANNING POLICIES 4.1 In terms of local plan policy, the site lies within an area designated on the Area Plan for the East as Industrial Use. The site is not within a Conservation Area. - 4.2 In terms of strategic plan policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 contains two policies that are considered materially relevant to the assessment of this current planning application: - b) respects the site and surroundings in terms of the siting, layout, scale, form, design and landscaping of buildings and the space around them; - c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape; - 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 adverse effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways." 4.3 Transport Policy 7: 'The Department will require that in all new development, parking provision must be in accordance with the Department's current standards.' The standard in respect of light industrial requires there to be one parking space per 30 sq m of floor space for light industrial use, one per 50 sq m of industrial floor space and 1 per 100 sq m of storage and distribution floor space. ## - 5.0 REPRESENTATIONS 5.1 Douglas Borough Council have no objection (08/07/16) - 5.2 Highway Services does not oppose (27.01.2021) commenting: "After reviewing this Application, Highway Services find it to have no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network efficiency and /or parking for the use classes described in keeping with other development on the estate, and without mezzanine floors being provided. The amount of car parking may be an issue on provision of additional floorspace and a limit on such should be considered. 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." ## - 6.0 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 and appearance of the surrounding area. - 6.2 The proposed use and building would be compatible with the original permission and the land use designation. The development will have little in the way of visual impact in terms of change to the character and appearance of the area as it is a developing industrial estate with buildings of a similar character already on the site. - 6.3 With regard to parking 28 spaces have been provided on the basis the use will be for light industrial which is at the upper end of parking requirements should the use change to general industrial. ## - 7.0 CONCLUSION 7.1 Overall, it is concluded that the planning application is in accordance with aforementioned General Policies of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and would have no adverse impact upon public or private amenities and therefore it is recommended for 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 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 : 15.02.2021 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. --- *Data sourced from the Isle of Man public planning register under the [Isle of Man Open Government Licence](https://www.gov.im/about-this-site/open-government-licence/).* *Canonical page: https://planningportal.im/a/6940-braddan-white-hoe-industrial-units-light-storage/documents/925858*