Officer Report

Application No.: 18/01240/C Applicant: Duncox Hospitality Limited Proposal: Change of use of ground floor and basement from retail to Class 3 Food and Drink Site Address: 15 - 17 Duke Street Douglas Isle of Man IM1 2BB Planning Officer: Mr Nick Salt Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 28.01.2019 _________________________________________________________________

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 14 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No2) Order 2013 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

• C 2. No customers shall be served or remain in the building outside the following hours 1100hrs - 2300hrs Monday to Thursday, 1100hrs - 0000hrs Friday and Saturday, 1100hrs 2000hrs Sunday] Reason: In the interests of public amenity and to reflect the application as submitted.
• C 3. The approved use may not commence until such times as an internal ventilation system has been installed to deal with the odours generated by the proposed use along with any system to deal with noise emitted from this equipment,

Note: the advice and approval of the Environmental Health Directorate, DEFA may be required prior to the use of the site as hereby approved. Reason: In the interests of residential amenity and reduction of pollution. Plans/Drawings/Information: This permission relates to the following plans and drawings, date stamped as received on 27th November 2018:

• o Location Plan

• o Planning Statement
• o 1806/SK1000 Proposed Ground Floor Plan
• o 1806/SK1001 Proposed Basement Plan _______________________________________________________________

Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report

1.0 SITE - 1.1 The proposal site consists of retail units at 15-17 Duke Street, Douglas. The building in which the units are situated (on the basement and ground floors) are very ornate in design with formal painted render and intricate window design. It is therefore quite a prominent building on the street scene of Lord Street and King Street. - 1.2 The surrounding area is characterised by a mix of retail, restaurant/bar and café uses. The site itself was previously occupied by a retail opticians and pie shop. It is within Athol Street and Victoria Street Conservation Area. To the rear of the site is a narrow single track access lane leading into a private locked courtyard. Behind this is a row of residential dwellings fronting onto Lord Street, and another row behind. The floors above the units are also residential flats.

2.0 PROPOSAL - 2.1 Proposed is the change of use only from Class 1 (retail) to Class 3 (café/restaurant) with no external alterations the building structure proposed. - 2.2 The opening hours of the sports bar proposed are to be 11am - 11pm Monday to Thursday, 11am - Midnight Friday and Saturday and 11am - 8pm Sunday. The bar/restaurant would employ 8-10 staff members potentially increasing over time, and the customer would be both those coming to eat (approximately 30-50 per day) and casual drinkers. The site is located 50 metres from Parade West car park and under 100 metres from Shaws Brow car park. It is also served by the nearby Lord Street bus station and taxi rank.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 The following past applications are materially relevant:

• o 96/00228/B Alterations and conversion of second and third floors to living accommodation with possible integral offices, 15&17 Duke Street. Permitted.
• o 16/00496/C Change of use from retail to food preparation and takeaway at 17 Duke Street. Permitted.

- 4.0 PLANNING POLICY

4.1 The proposal site is in an area designated in the Douglas Local Plan 1998 as Predominantly Shopping. As previously stated it is within a Conservation Area. - 4.2 As the site is within Douglas Town Centre, it is therefore important to give consideration to Strategic Policy 9 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016, concerning the importance of viable and vibrant town centres to provide convenient and accessible amenities for all members of the community:

"All new retail development (excepting neighbourhood shops and those instances identified in Business Policy 5) and all new office development (excepting corporate headquarters suitable for a business park(1) location) must be sited within the town and village centres on land

zoned for these purposes in Area Plans, whilst taking into consideration Business Policies 7 and 8."

4.3 Consideration must also be given to General Policy 2 (in part):

"Development which is in accordance with the land-use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan and with other policies of this Strategic Plan will normally be permitted, provided that the development: (c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape;

• (g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality;
• (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 unacceptable effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways."

4.4 Environment Policy 22: Development will not be permitted where it would unacceptably harm the environment and/or the amenity of nearby properties in terms of:

• i) pollution of sea, surface water or groundwater;
• ii) emissions of airborne pollutants; and
• iii) vibration, odour, noise or light pollution.

- 5.0 REPRESENTATIONS

5.1 Douglas Borough Council have no objection to the proposals but make the following comments for consideration:

"The Council asks that consideration is given to the ventilation systems to be installed as part of the proposed application and that this will be endorsed by the Environmental Health Directorate prior to the premises becoming operational to ensure that the noise and potential fumes extracted from the premises do not cause a nuisance to the immediate neighbours." (19/12/18)

5.2 DoI Highway Services have stated that they have No Highways Interest in the application (7/12/18). - 5.3 The Isle of Man Constabulary (Alcohol Unit) have provided the following comments: "This is a new application, as you will be aware. The architect has been engaging with me over this, albeit again I could not provide qualified advice on the design. However, the architect has researched the best practices in terms of security & CCTV. The Provisional Licence application is due in court on 7th February 2019. My main concern on the plans would be how will the staff keep a close eye on the customers using the basement area and toilets as it appears to be quite secluded. For example, how will they know who is drinking what (under-age etc.) or if any recreational drugs are being used. That would be a matter for them to explain in court. I understand they want a Music Licence up until 1am each day, I do not find that unreasonable, but I would not want it any later than that. But in general, I do not foresee any formal objection from the police." (25.01.19).

- 6.0 ASSESSMENT

6.1 When assessing this proposal, it is important to consider the principle of the change of use, the potential impacts on the surrounding area and the nearby residents, and on parking provision for both staff and customers. - 6.2 PRINCIPLE OF THE CHANGE OF USE

• 6.2.1 In principle, there are no issues with the change of use from a Class 1 retail shop to a Class 3 café/restaurant given that the site is located within a central area in Douglas which features a range of retail and café/bar/restaurant uses. Both uses are prevalent in the area,

and the central location of cafés and restaurants in towns can encourage their overall vibrancy and footfall. In this respect the proposal is in keeping with Strategic Policy 9.

- 6.3 IMPACT ON THE AREA

• 6.3.1 Visually, there would be no proposed exterior alterations to the units. The visual impact of the proposed sports bar is not therefore likely to have any effect on the overall street scene or the character of the main building.

• 6.3.2 The presence of a sports bar in the area would add an additional amenity feature to visitors and residents in Douglas and potentially compliment the shopping use of the area and the evening economy of Douglas given its proximity to the Quayside. The impact from this perspective would be generally positive.
• 6.3.3 The police have commented and stated that they have no planning objection to the proposal and will liaise with the applicants to ensure that the bar is properly managed. They have also commented that an opening time of later than 1am would not be acceptable. Due to the representations from the police being positive, the proposal is not deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to the amenity of the area.
• 6.4 ODOUR/NOISE POLLUTION

6.4.1 The is some concern regarding the impact of extraction of fumes and odours from the premises due to the preparation of food, particularly given the residential dwellings to the rear - this was noted by Douglas Borough Council.

• 6.4.2 The applicant was consulted on 09/01/19 and provided details of the ventilation systems to be installed:

• o "A carbon filter permanent suspension ventilation module can be fitted which will cause any contaminated air entering or exiting your commercial kitchen to pass through a carbon filter, which will absorb the majority of chemical molecules in the airstream. The unique carbon bonding methods used by Extraction Canopy in the construction of these systems ensures no dust or other by-products (often a side-effect of using lower-quality ventilation systems) will be left behind from the extraction process.
• o An electrostatic precipitator (ESP) also contains a filter which removes larger particles. Once air has passed through the filter, it is vented through an ioniser, which electrically charges contaminations in the air, before passing through a final filter which spreads the airflow out into your commercial kitchen.
• o The ON 100 Odour Neutraliser is a small device which ought to be installed in the ducting of a commercial kitchen, downstream of your extraction hood and upstream of your extractor fan. The cooker hood will remove most of the contaminants, with air being next drawn into the ON 100 and mixed with the neutralising chemical compound Eliminodor before being returned to the environment via the extractor fan.
• o UV-C Odour Control Technology uses ultraviolet light to break down the tiny organic compounds causing the odour. Installed within the kitchen ventilation system like the ON 100, this is the most technologically advanced and environmentally friendly method of odour control."

• 6.4.3 The case officer is satisfied that the proposed ventilation systems would be adequate to preserve the residential amenity of nearby properties, and recommends that a condition be attached requiring approval from the Environmental Health Directorate prior to the operation of the premises as a Sports Bar. The applicants have confirmed that no external systems are to be installed.

- 6.5 PARKING

• 6.5.1 There would be the increase in demand from the staff working at the premises but given the location close to public car parking and bus services, it is not foreseen that the absence of parking on site would be an issue -this is standard in the town centre. DoI

Highways have stated that they have no interest in the application from a highways perspective.

- 7.0 CONCLUSION

7.1 In summary, the proposed change of use complies with the aforementioned policies in the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and is recommended for approval. - 8.0 INTERESTED PERSON STATUS

8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013 Article 6(4), the following persons are automatically interested persons:

• (a) The applicant, or if there is one, the applicant's agent;
• (b) The owner and the occupier of any land that is the subject of the application or any other person in whose interest the land becomes vested;
• (c) Any Government Department that has made written submissions relating to planning considerations with respect to the application that the Department considers material
• (d) Highway Services Division of Department of Infrastructure and
• (e) The local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated. 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 in Article 6(4) 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.

Decision Made : Permitted Date: 28.01.2019 Determining officer

Signed : S CORLETT Sarah Corlett Principal Planner

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