To consider the planning applications contained in the list.
Minutes:
(a) No 1 on the Plans List (16/00924/MOUT – Outline for the erection of up to 60 dwellings and means of access – land and buildings at NGR 277744 102582 (East of Dulings Farm, Copplestone).
The Area Planning Officer outlined the contents of the report highlighting by way of presentation the outline application, the road network, the means of access to the site, the proposed pedestrian link leading to the school and stated that although the public footpath route would be affected by the application those issues would be covered by a Reserved Matters application. Members viewed the scope of the application site and the route of the Salix stream which was overgrown and had been the cause of concern with regard to possible flooding issues. The school site and the playing field were identified as was a pending scheme at the Old Abattoir, the proposed footpath at Bewsley Hill, the landscaped areas within the site, an indicative plan of the proposed housing, the design of the proposed junction and photographs from various aspects of the site and the A377.
The Area Planning Officer continued outlining the principles for development and highlighting the need for a 5 year land supply, the fact that the proposal was outside the settlement limit and the wording within the National Planning Policy which identified the reasoning for the officer recommendation of approval. He informed the meeting of the formula used by the County Council to calculate the education requirement within the proposed Section 106 agreement and the contribution towards enhancement of the sports field instead of an air quality contribution. He highlighted the issues raised regarding possible flooding issues raised by residents and the proposed conditions which referred to the salix stream.
He then responded to the questions posed in public question time: a pre app meeting was not specifically required (although helpful) and these issues had been addressed through the presentation and within the report; the red line on the application plan showed the application site and the blue line identified the land in the same ownership. With regard to access to the school, there would be access links from within the site as part of the Section 106 agreement, the details of which would be addressed through a Reserved Matters application. The improvements to the junction on Bewsley Hill and the A377 had been identified in the presentation. With regard to a pending application at the Old Abattoir (Shambles 2), both applications had to be determined separately and it was not an either/or situation, if both schemes did come forward the education requirement would need to be updated. The benefits to the local community would be an improvement in the transport infrastructure and funding which would enable the community hall. The road layouts for Bewsley Hill had been addressed within the presentation; with regard to Full Council and the Local Plan, the officer had set out a recommendation for the committee to consider which was against current planning policy; with regard to grassland areas, the network of green infrastructure had been identified throughout the site and the protected species mentioned within the report. With regard to pedestrian safety, the scheme would deliver offsite movement. There was potential to improve the pedestrian network at the Reserved Matters application stage. With regard to paragraph 14 of the National Planning Policy Framework, there was a need to weigh up the planning balance. He felt that the other issues raised which included: road safety, the blue line within the application plan, the use of the public right of way and the peak rainfall predictors had been covered within the report or by condition.
Consideration was given to:
· The education formula which calculated school places required for development
· The lack of an air quality contribution within the Section 106 agreement as it was felt that the residents of the proposed housing would contribute to air quality issues in Crediton
· Flood risk and management
· The lack of a 5 year land supply, but that the Local Plan Review Document was well on its way towards submission
· Recent appeal decisions with regard to the lack of a 5 year land supply
· The sustainability of the proposal
· Possible increase in traffic
· Lack of consultation with the local people and contrary to the current Local Plan
· Access issues at Elston Lane
RESOLVED that the application be refused planning permission and that delegated authority be given to the Head of Planning and Regeneration to prepare a full set of reasons for refusal and issue the decision based on the following reasons:
1. The application site is outside the current settlement limit boundaries of the village of Copplestone and is in the open countryside. Policy COR18 of the adopted Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1) seeks to strictly control development outside settlement limits and a development in this location of the scale as proposed would not be permitted under criteria a - f of this adopted policy. Neither is the site proposed to be allocated for housing within the Councils Local Plan Review 2013 -2033. The applicant asserts that the Local Planning Authority cannot demonstrate that it has an adequate five year supply of housing land as required by the National Planning Policy Framework, and therefore Policy COR18 should be afforded limited weight and that the application should be determined against the provisions of Paragraph 14 of the National Planning Policy Framework. When tested against Paragraph 14 of the Framework the Local Planning Authority consider that the adverse impacts of the proposed development would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits when assessed against the policies of the Framework as a whole as well as being contrary to Policy COR1 of the Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1) and Policy DM1 of the Mid Devon Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies).
2. The Local Planning Authority consider that the proposed unplanned development individually, and cumulatively together with the proposed development within the Local Plan Review for the village, would be out of scale with the size of the settlement of Copplestone to the detriment of its character and the general amenities of the village. For this reason the development would fail to meet the sustainable development principles required to be met by the National Planning Policy Framework and Policy COR1 of the Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1) and Policy DM1 of the Mid Devon Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies).
3. The Local Planning Authority consider that the application proposal has not satisfactorily demonstrated that surface water from the development can be satisfactorily controlled and discharged to the Salix Stream channel without resulting in unacceptable flood risk downstream of the application site to the detriment of the amenities of the locality where there are already records of flooding concerns. On this basis the application is considered to be contrary to Policies COR1 and COR11 of the Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1) and Policies DM1 and DM2 of the Mid Devon Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies).
4. The Local Planning Authority considers that the application proposal has not satisfactorily demonstrated that the additional primary school pupil places required to serve the development could be satisfactorily provided at the Copplestone village primary school, and therefore the application scheme is considered to result in detriment to the existing amenities of the village school. On this basis the application scheme is considered to be contrary to Policy COR1 of the Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1), Policy AL/IN/ 5 of the Allocations and Infrastructure Development Plan Document (Local Plan Part 2) and Policy DM1 of the Mid Devon Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies).
5. The Local Planning Authority consider that the application would result in an unacceptable impact upon the highway safety for users of the highway of Elston Lane and it's junction with the A377. Whilst the application scheme includes amendments to the highway and a new junction arrangement the alterations as proposed are not considered to satisfactorily address the detrimental impacts of the development upon highway safety contrary to Policies COR1, COR9 and COR18 of the Mid Devon Core Strategy (Local Plan Part 1) and Policy DM1 of the Mid Devon Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies).
(Proposed by Cllr P J Heal and seconded by Cllr B A Moore)
Notes:
(i) Cllrs: Mrs H Bainbridge, Mrs C Collis, Mrs F J Colthorpe, R Evans, P J Heal, D J Knowles, F W Letch, B A Moore, R F Radford and J D Squire made declarations in accordance with the Protocol of Good Practice for Councillors in dealing with Planning Matters as they had all received correspondence regarding the application;
(ii) Cllrs P J Heal and D R Coren declared personal interests as they were Ward Members and knew objectors and the landowner;
(iii) Cllr N A Way declared a personal interest as County Councillor and therefore he had had some involvement with the objectors to the application;
(iv) Cllr D J Knowles declared a personal interest as he knew some of the objectors;
(v) Cllr J D Squire declared a personal interest as he was an adjoining Ward Member and knew some of the objectors;
(vi) Mr Bowdler spoke on behalf of the objectors;
(vii) Cllr Penny spoke on behalf of the Parish Council;
(viii) Cllr D R Coren and P J Heal spoke as Ward Members ;
(ix) Cllr N A Way spoke as County Councillor for the area;
(x) Cllrs Mrs H Bainbridge and Mrs F J Colthorpe requested that their vote against the decision be recorded;
(xi) The following late information was reported: Page 24: Vehicle Tracking and Junctions plans (rev A) submitted for consideration on 21st December
Site Access Junction Plan rev G received on 13th December and superseding revision F.
Page 27: The Highway Authority have confirmed that the plans demonstrate that the design of the new junction arrangements incorporates a 10m radii to accommodate the HGV swept paths.
Since the report was issued a further 8 letters of objection have been received. The reasons for objecting reflect the matters as set out, and covered in the report. Two issues are highlighted for further detailed consideration by members:
1. The impact of the development on the adopted public footpath no.53 that passes over the site. At this stage members are not being asked to consider and/or approve a detailed layout as the application has been submitted as an outline application with all matters reserved except for access. It is however acknowledged that the indicative layout presents a scheme that would interrupt the route, although the indicative layout does indicate a number of options as to how the path could be diverted.
If the planning application is approved at this stage then at the reserved matters stage a detailed layout would need to be submitted for consideration. If at this stage the layout results in an interruption to the route of the public footpath then at the same time as submitting application it would be necessary to submit an application to also divert the footpath.
Therefore at this stage the issue of how the application affects the route of footpath no.53 raises no further issues for consideration.
2. One of the letters of objection refers to the application submitted under 16/01888/MOUT, referred to as the Shambles 2 scheme, which is raised in the report on page 37. The report already refers to the fact that the current application is not being proposed as an alternative application to the Shambles 2 scheme, and it sets out the correct policy framework against which the application should be assessed. Notwithstanding, the report on page 38 sets out the maximum number of additional spaces (25) that would be required at the local primary school in the event the schemes at both Dulings Meadow and at the Shambles 2 were brought forward to the implementation stage.
Finally and for the avoidance of doubt, the terms of the representation make it clear that as a local community the Shambles 2 scheme is a much better option for the village.
The government has announced its intended reform of New Homes Bonus. The current 6 year term for the award is to be reduced to 5 years in 17/18 and 4 years from 18/19. The financial contributions given in the report reflect the 6 year position and should be adjusted in accordance with the most recent Government position.
(b) No 2 on the Plans List (16/01232/FULL – Conversion of a redundant rural building to a residential dwelling – Redgates Farm, Bickleigh).
The Area Planning Officer outlined the contents of the report highlighting by way of presentation the site location plan, the original agricultural building that had been converted to B1 and B8 use and subsequently to residential accommodation on the first floor (without permission); the current owners had not used the building which was now redundant. She highlighted the proposed design and layout of the proposed conversion and provided photographs from various aspects of the site.
Consideration was given to:
· Whether the application positively contributed to Policy DM11
· Leaving a building that did not positively contribute to the rural character in place rather than improve the situation
· A contribution to public open space through a Section 106 agreement could be set out with any approval
RESOLVED that planning permission be granted for the following reasons: The conversion of the building would provide a future use of the building which is currently redundant. The conversion would cause no harm to the local highway network, external appearance of the building or residential amenities of the nearest dwelling. The building could be converted without significant extension while maintaining nature conservation interest associated with it. The proposal is considered to be compliant with policies DM2 and DM11 Local Plan Part 3 (Development Management Policies), and that delegated authority be given to the Head of Planning and Regeneration to consider appropriate conditions and negotiate a Section 106 Agreement to secure a financial contribution of £1442 toward the off site provision of public open space.
(Proposed by Cllr D J Knowles and seconded by Cllr Mrs H Bainbridge)
Notes:
(i) Mr Archer (Agent) spoke;
(ii) The following late information was reported: 30th December 2016
Page 45 – Highway Authority response should say:
‘Highway Authority standing advice applies as per www.devon.gov.uk/highway-standingadvice.pdf’
The government has announced its intended reform of New Homes Bonus. The current 6 year term for the award is to be reduced to 5 years in 17/18 and 4 years from 18/19. The financial contributions given in the report reflect the 6 year position and should be adjusted in accordance with the most recent Government position.
Supporting documents: