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STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF A PLANNING APPLICATION FOR THE PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL CONVERSION OF MONA HOUSE 33 MALEW STREET, CASTLETOWN
ISSUED: $\quad 27 / 05 / 16$
CONTENTS
2.0 THE APPLICATION SITE \& SURROUNDING AREA 3.0 THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT 4.0 PLANNING HISTORY AND RELEVANT PLANNING APPLICATIONS 5.0 ASSESSMENT IN TERMS OF PLANNING POLICY
Appendix A Photographs
1.1 The following is a statement in support of an Application for Planning Approval for the conversion of Mona House, 33 Malew Street, Castletown, into five apartments. The application includes the in filling of a window in the gable wall of 31 Malew Street, which is included in the application site. 1.2 The application site is owned by the applicant, Cumana Ltd. The current use of Mona House is as offices. However, the applicant has been unable to secure a tenant for this use for over two years, and therefore proposes to convert the property into apartments for rental.
2.1 The application site is located in Malew Street, in the Castletown Conservation Area and comprises 33 Malew Street and part of 31 Malew Street. 35 Malew Street (a private dwelling) is to the north. The Old Methodist Chapel is across the road directly opposite. A private dwelling called Mona Cottage is directly adjacent to the site to the west. This building is within the curtilage of the private residential property known as Bagnio House, which extends from the application site to Arbory Street. Apart from a bathroom window in the east wall of Mona Cottage, there are no windows facing onto the site from the neighbouring properties. 2.2 The part of 31 Malew Street included in the application site is the building fronting onto Malew Street, and comprises a restaurant on the ground floor and a residential flat and attic on the upper floors. The rest of the property (not included in the application site) comprises an unoccupied barn to the rear, as well as an external courtyard adjacent to 33 Malew Street, which is used for utility storage. 2.333 Malew Street comprises an existing two storey building, known as Mona House, surrounded by an external courtyard which is currently used for parking. Vehicular access to the site is currently via a narrow side lane between Mona House and 35 Malew Street, which leads to the courtyard from Malew Street. There is a pedestrian gate, and a separate vehicle entrance, leading off the courtyard to the grounds of Mona Cottage. The garages of Mona Cottage and 35 Malew Street are also accessed from the courtyard. The residents of Mona Cottage, Bagnio House and 35 Malew Street all have rights of access to their properties via the site.
2.4 Mona House is a traditional stone walled building with a pitched roof covered in natural slate. Both the north and south gables are exposed and have chimney stacks. There are two bays projecting from the front facade terminating in dormer roofs, between which is a central dormer window. The bay window dormer roofs and cheeks are clad with what appear to be fibre cement tiles. It is thought that the bays and dormers were added some time after the original building was constructed, as evidenced by the way the roof purlins have been cut to accommodate the dormers. The second floor rooms are completely within the roof space and the second floor window head level is approximately 1.6 meters above floor level.
3.1 It is proposed to erect a new two storey extension to the south of Mona House, creating two new apartments on the first and second floors (designated on the planning drawings as Apartments 2 and 4 respectively). Mona House is to be retained and altered to accommodate a further three apartments on the ground, first and second floors (designated Apartment 1, 3 and 5 respectively). The new apartments are to have two bedrooms each. 3.2 The areas of the proposed apartments are as follows:
Apartment 177 m 2 Apartment 2102 m 2 Apartment 378 m 2 Apartment 4102 m 2 Apartment 578 m 2 3.3 The existing building is to be re roofed and the eaves level raised to approximately align with that of 35 Malew Street, in order to achieve comfortable head room in the second floor apartments. The head level of the existing second floor bay windows is to be raised to approximately 2 meters above floor level. 3.4 The existing outlets to the rear of Mona House are to be demolished to increase vehicle circulation space. 3.5 Apartments 2 to 5 will be accessed via a new staircase within the walls of Mona House. Apartment 1 will be entered directly off Malew Street via the existing front entrance.
3.6 Vehicles will enter the site via the existing side lane and exit onto Malew Street via a new exit to the south of Mona House. There are to be eight on-site parking bays in the external courtyard. Vehicular and pedestrian access via the site to the grounds of Mona Cottage, as well as access to the garages of Mona Cottage and 35 Malew Street, will be maintained. 3.7 The existing attic window in the north facing gable of 31 Malew Street is to be filled in.
4.1 A search of the Online Access to Planning Applications Service on the Isle of Man Government website did not reveal any previous planning applications in respect of the site which would be considered relevant to this application.
5.1 The relevant planning policy documents pertaining to the proposed development are the Isle of Man Strategic Plan (SP), adopted in 2016 and the Area Plan for the South (APS) 2013 which replaced the Castletown Local Area Plan (1991). The site is within an area designated as "mixed use" in the APS. 5.2 One of the key elements of the Island Spatial Strategy for the South is stated in the APS as:
5.3 In the Summary of Area Plan Proposals in the APS, it is stated that: 'i. Housing will be provided; a. by the continued conversion or redevelopment of redundant or under-used land and buildings within the settlement boundary, and b. on allocated sites, the most significant being the land off Victoria Road, opposite Janet's Corner (Site 6) although there are other smaller sites identified (see Chapter 4 and Maps 3 and 5)."
Although the site is not an allocated site as described above, it fits the description of paragraph a. 5.4 The proposed development is therefore in keeping with the Island Spatial Strategy for the South, and the Area Plan Proposals in respect of housing provision, as stated in the APS. 5.5 The following Strategic Plan Policies are considered to be relevant to the consideration of this application:
5.6 The main issues in terms of these policies with regard to the proposals are as follows:
5.7.1 The proposed development will create new housing within the existing town and will have access to existing infrastructure, transport links and amenities. It is therefore considered to be in accordance with the principles of SP 1, SP 2 and HP 4. In particular, the proposals will contribute towards reducing the housing shortage in Castletown, particularly with regard to mid level private apartment accommodation. It is considered that increasing this sort of housing provision could encourage more middle to high income earners to live in Castletown, which would contribute towards the economic regeneration of the town. 5.7.2 The proposed development is within an area zoned as mixed use in the APS and as such is in accordance with the land-use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan as required by GP 2.
a. Currently vehicles must enter and exit the site via the side lane to the north of Mona House. Currently as one exits the site via the existing lane there is visibility to the right as far as the junction with Bank Street, but no visibility to the left. However, vehicles approaching the site from the left are likely to be travelling at higher speeds than those approaching from the right, due to the much longer distance from the site entrance to the A5 junction compared to the distance to the junction with Bank Street. b. It is proposed to create a new exit to the south of Mona House, and use the side lane for entry only. The new exit will have visibility as far as the junction with Mill Street to the left, and approximately 13.5 m to the right. In addition, the risk of collision between cars entering and exiting the site is removed. The proposed new access and egress arrangements are therefore a significant improvement on the existing situation.
a. 8 parking bays are to be provided on-site. This equates to at least one parking bay per apartment with up to three visitors' bays. b. There are approximately 10 unreserved on-street parking spaces in Malew Street in the immediate vicinity of the site (between the junctions with Mill Street and Bank Street). c. The residential parking standards in Appendix 7 of the SP require 2 bays per dwelling for new built residential development. However, the standards state: "In the case of town centre and previously developed sites, 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; (c) any restriction on the nature of the occupancy (such as sheltered housing); and (d) the impact on the character and appearance of the surrounding area.
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 buildings which are in sound condition will outweigh the drawback of any shortfall in parking provision." d. The proposed development is in the town centre and is within easy walking distance of the local bus route, local businesses and amenities, reducing the need for car journeys. e. In the applicant's experience as a property investment company, tenants of two bedroom flats seldom require more than one parking bay. In addition to the on-site visitors' bays, the existing on-street bays will be available intermittently for visitor parking. It is not considered that the development would generate a level of parking demand that would significantly impact on the existing on street parking provision. f. When the site was in use as offices, up to 15 cars were parked on and around the site during business hours. The proposed residential development is likely to generate far less traffic than this and will have less impact on the area in traffic terms than commercial development. g. Therefore in regard to parking and other traffic related issues the development is considered to comply SP 10, paragraphs (g), (h) and (i) of GP 2 and paragraph (c) of HP 17.
5.9.1 The proposed development would not create any new windows that would face onto the windows of habitable rooms of any of the neighbouring properties or properties on the opposite side of Malew Street. 5.9.2 The attic of 31 Malew Street, whose gable window is to be in filled, is not a habitable room. 5.9.3 Although the extension will be considerably higher than 31 Malew Street, it will not overlook a garden or any space that can be considered an outdoor amenity. 5.9.4 The extension will overlook the parking area of Mona Cottage from a distance of approximately 12.5 m . The main garden area of Mona Cottage is approximately 20 meters away from the extension and the proposed development will not impact on the outdoor amenity of Mona Cottage in terms of outlook or overlooking. 5.9.5 As explained previously, it is not considered that the development would have an unacceptable impact on the area in terms of traffic or parking.
5.9.6 Therefore the proposed development would not have an adverse impact on the amenity of the local residents, in compliance with paragraph (g) of GP 2.
5.10.1 The streetscape of Malew Street in the immediate vicinity of the site comprises terraces of buildings of traditional construction fronting directly onto the street, with thick stone walls and pitched slate roofs. The ridge and eaves heights of the individual buildings along the street differ significantly, with 35 Malew Street being much higher, and 31 Malew Street much lower, than Mona House. The windows of the properties tend to be regular in their size and arrangement, the exception being 31 Malew Street, whose windows are more irregular and more widely varying in size. The Old Methodist Chapel is dramatically taller than the surrounding houses and set well back from the road. 5.10.2 The main distinguishing features of Mona House are its bay windows, arched front entrance and facade set back from the street behind iron railings. The facade is attractive overall, although the top floor bay windows are too low and poorly proportioned. The front slopes of the bay window dormer roofs are unusually steeply pitched, which is not considered to be attractive. The modern fibre cement cladding to the dormer roofs and cheeks is not attractive and does not contribute to the appearance of the building or the character of the surrounding area. 5.10.3 The gap between Mona House and 31 Malew Street creates a stark break in the terrace, through which the gables and rear outlets of 31 Malew Street are visible. Although this is distinctive, it is not considered to be a pleasing feature of the streetscape of sufficient value as to be worth preserving at the expense of the proposed development. The remains of a previous abutting roof are visible on the gable of 31 Malew Street. It is therefore probable that the gap used to be in filled with buildings which were demolished. 5.10.4 The design of the proposed extension facade aims to complete the streetscape while visually unifying the extension with Mona House and the adjacent terraces. The vertical rhythm of the bay windows is continued by the new dormer over the new vehicle archway. The levels and proportions of the extension windows follow those of Mona House. The existing iron railings are to be retained and continued in front of the extension. It is intended to provide planting in pots in the area between the railings and the facade, as well as planting boxes in the wall recesses either side of the archway.
5.10.5 The eaves height of Mona House is to be increased to align with that of 35 Malew Street, in order to achieve comfortable headroom in the top floor apartments. The consequent increase in height of the second floor bay windows is considered to be a significant improvement in the overall appearance of the front facade. The height of the altered building and extension is considered to be appropriate for the area, given the height of 35 Malew Street and the Old Methodist Chapel. Overall it is considered that the proposals would improve the existing building and the streetscape of the area. 5.10.6 It is therefore considered that the proposed development would preserve and enhance the character of the conservation area, in addition to retaining the special features contributing to the character and quality of the area, and accord with EP 35. The new development has been designed to take account of the particular character and identity of the area, in accordance with EP 42. 5.10.7 The proposed development will retain Mona House, a building which makes a positive contribution to the character and appearance of the Conservation Area, in accordance with EP 39 . 5.10.8 In accordance with EP 34, traditional materials and finishes are to be used, or modern materials considered to be appropriate to the character of the conservation area. The existing timber windows are to be replaced with double glazed uPVC frame heritage windows, to improve their thermal efficiency and durability. Roof windows have been used in preference to additional dormers, to maintain an uncluttered roof line.
{{image:166017}} 01 Mona House (viewed from the Old Methodist Chapel; facing north west) {{image:166018}} 02 Mona House and 31 Malew Street (viewed from the Old Methodist Chapel; facing west); Mona Cottage can be seen behind Mona House.
03 Gable of 31 Malew Street (facing south west) 04 Overall street view showing the Old Methodist Chapel (facing north)
05 Existing side lane currently used for vehicular entrance and exit; 35 Malew Street is on the right 06 31 Malew Street gables and outlet (viewed from the external courtyard; facing south)
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