DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 19/00613/B Applicant: Port Erin Commissioners Proposal: Conversion of building to create a heritage centre Site Address: Former Bus Shelter and Toilets Bridson Street Port Erin Isle of Man IM9 6AN Principal Planner: Miss S E Corlett Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 02.07.2019 _________________________________________________________________

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.

N 1. The applicant and the local authority are encouraged to consider the relocation of the clothes banks and recycling bins from the site so that visitors to the new heritage centre can have safe and convenient access to the new visitors' facility and so that the investment in the building is maximised and not spoiled by these functional structures.

Plans/Drawings/Information:

This decision relates to drawings RG/RHT/07-01, 02, RG/RHT/07-3 and RG/RHT/07-04 all received on 24th May, 2019.

_______________________________________________________________ Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

It is recommended that the owners/occupiers of the following properties should not be given Interested Person Status as they are not considered to have sufficient interest in the subject matter of the application to take part in any subsequent proceedings and are not mentioned in Article 6(4):

Silverburn on Bridson Street and Flat 1, Edremony Court, Rowany Drive as they are not within 20m of the application site and the development is not automatically required to be the subject of an EIA by Appendix 5 of the Strategic Plan, in accordance with paragraph 2B of the Policy and as they do not refer to the relevant issues in accordance with paragraph 2C of the Policy and as they have not explained how the development would impact the lawful use of land owned or occupied by them and in relation to the relevant issues identified in paragraph 2C of the Policy, as is required by paragraph 2D of the Policy. _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report THE SITE

1.1 The site is the footprint of a building located on the western side of Bridson Street. The building accommodates a bus shelter and public toilets which the application explains are no longer used, the shelter having been relocated to Station Road and the toilets decommissioned with refurbished toilet facilities in the railway station which forms the new transport hub for the village. - 1.2 The building is functional in appearance, being partly flat roofed between two end pitched roofed elements and finished in painted render with a tiled roof. - 1.3 The site sits opposite the Cherry Orchard aparthotel and the recently converted bar which is now Quine's hardware shop. The Commissioners' Officers and a church lie to the north along with residential properties and immediately to the north is a complex of shops, library and car park. THE PROPOSAL

2.1 Proposed is the conversion of the building from the bus shelter and toilets to a heritage centre. The application is made by Port Erin Commissioners. They explain that the current toilets do not comply with current requirements for accessibility and as there are toilet facilities at the station, as well as on Shore Road and the harbour, the Commissioners do not consider that there is a need to maintain the current ones on Bridson Street which will require significant investment to bring them to standard. - 2.2 The changes to the building include the insertion of high level windows in the central part of the rear elevation and the infilling of the presently open central part of the front of the building, with glazing in the form of fixed full length panels and an entrance along with a ramped and stepped access in front of the building: currently there is a step up to the building. Also proposed is the replacement of the existing windows which could be undertaken without planning approval under Class 38 of The Town and Country Planning (Permitted Development) Order 2012. - 2.3 Inside the building there will be an office, toilet, kitchenette, store and the largest internal space will be an exhibition/meeting/shop area. It is anticipated that there will be signage above the glazing on the front elevation and additional signage on each gable. This will need to form the subject of an application under the Control of Advertisements Regulations 2013. - 2.4 Rushen Heritage Trust, who will occupy the building, was formed in 2014 following Port Erin Commissioners' request for ideas from the public for the future development of the village. The two main objectives of the organisation is to strengthen community involvement, collective memory and local identity through preserving, enhancing, communicating and celebrating the heritage of the south of the Island and second, to use heritage to attract visitors to Rushen for the benefit of both the local economy and the whole community. - 2.5 To date, RHT have held seven exhibitions at a variety of pop up locations and have attracted over 10,000 visits, have published three heritage books and they have delivered a

• WW2 Women's Internment Experience to schools. They have established a walking trail and live Pierrot shows with the help of more than 150 active volunteers and an active social media programme.
• 2.6 They suggest that the only alternative to the current proposal is to demolish the building and hard surface the remaining space. The heritage centre would be known as Tree Archyn (the three arches) and would provide the Trust with a multi-purpose base from which it would provide its services and operations. They consider that the benefits of the proposal would be that the building would be used and improved at no cost to the local community; it would add to the attractions of the village and provide a venue for people to have a drink and be able to discuss the area, reducing congestion on Station Road. They intend the building to be open 5-6 days per week from 1000 to 1600hrs from May to September and as required for evening and other events. They acknowledge that there will be a slight increase in traffic as a result of the use although coaches could still drop people off right outside the building and pick customers up at the Station Road car park and many visitors are likely to come by bus or train. They refer to the various car parking facilities in close proximity to the site.
• 2.7 The Commissioners have agreed to provide the building to the Trust on lease for 99 years. PLANNING POLICY

3.1 The site is designated as Proposed Mixed Use on the Area Plan for the South adopted in

1. It sits alongside, but is not part of a site which has a specific development brief which states the following:

4.60 Development Brief 21

• 1. The site is situated in a key position close to a supermarket on Bay View Road, the shops in and around Bridson Street and retailing premises along Church Road and Orchard Street. Any redevelopment scheme must include a design and access statement which must explain and illustrate the principles and concept behind the design and layout of the scheme including any landscaping.

The statement must demonstrate how the scheme integrates with the existing buildings and their uses in the Mixed Use area and how it encourages good physical links between buildings, pedestrian routes and spaces to improve the character and appearance, and usability of this area generally.

• 2. Advice must be sought from the Highways Division (DoI) prior to the submission of any application.
• 3.2 The Plan clarifies what it means by "Mixed Use" as follows:

6.6.2 Development within an area of Mixed Use (as designated on the Proposals Map/Inset Maps) or those sites proposed for Mixed Use (identified on the Maps as 'Proposed Mixed Use') will comprise a mix of some or all of the following uses33: residential; shops; financial and professional services; food and drink; research and development, light industry; hotels and hostels; hospitals, nursing homes and residential institutions; community uses; leisure; tourism and open space. For applications relating to sites proposed for Mixed Use, the mix and types of uses on the site will be determined on their merits in accordance with the Proposals in the Area Plan and the Isle of Man Strategic Plan Policies.

3.3 Section 6.28 recognises the importance of tourism to Port Erin. PLANNING HISTORY - 4.1 Planning approval was granted for the extension of the facility to provide facilities for disabled persons and an access ramp although this was not implemented (08/02171/B).

• REPRESENTATIONS
• 5.1 Port Erin Commissioners advise on 11th June, 2019 that they will not be meeting to discuss the application until 9th July, 2019.

5.2 Department of Infrastructure Highway Services have not commented.

5.3 The owner of a holiday home on Rowany Drive is supportive of the proposal, noting a number of redundant hotel sites in the village (12.06.19). - 5.4 The owner of Silverburn on Bridson Street support the application but enquire where the recycling bins and clothes banks are to be relocated as if they are retained in their current location, they will spoil the redevelopment and diminish the visitors' experience. They suggest that they should be relocated to the car park behind the police station which would facilitate safe use by both motorists and pedestrians (17.06.19).

ASSESSMENT 6.1 The proposal would be consistent with the land use designation and would revitalise a building which currently is not used. Whilst a heritage organisation may benefit from a more historic or interesting building, what is proposed will enhance its appearance and provide a use for a building which is in the public gaze and in an accessible location.

6.2 The addition of this tourist/heritage facility will also enhance the range of tourism facilities in the village and will complement the existing attractions such as the railway station, the various shops and eating establishments, the harbour and the beach.

6.3 Whilst there will be additional traffic generated by the proposal, the existing use is as a bus stop which attracted vehicles and people to the area and the site is also close to existing retail facilities and the village's largest grocery store. - 6.4 It would not be appropriate to require the relocation of the clothes banks and recycling bins as this is a function of the local authority. However, it would seem sensible for these facilities to be relocated so that visitors can have safe and convenient access to the new visitors' facility and so that the investment in the building is maximised and not spoiled by these functional structures.

CONCLUSION

7.1 The application is considered to accord with the relevant policies and is supported. Given the location separate from premises which could be affected by the operation of the facility as proposed, it is not considered necessary to limit the times of operation of the facility. 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: 10.07.2019 Determining officer

Signed : C BALMER Chris Balmer Principal Planner

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