15 April 2010 · Senior Planning Officer (delegated authority under Article 3(13) of the Town and Country (Development Procedure) Order 2005)
Trevelyan, 18, Palace Terrace, Douglas, Isle Of Man, IM2 4ne
The proposal involved converting existing staff quarters in the basement of the Trevelyan Hotel, a mid-terrace late Victorian building, into a fast food takeaway outlet. This included creating a 1250mm wide opening in the front boundary wall at street level, installing steps and a hardwood door with matching render, pl…
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The officer assessed the proposal as incompatible with the site's tourism/residential/office zoning and surrounding uses, including the hotel above and permanent residential apartments in adjacent bui…
General Policy 2
Requires development to respect surroundings, not adversely affect amenity of local residents or character of locality (g), and provide satisfactory amenity standards (h). Officer found proposal breaches this due to noise/disturbance from customers near residential windows in mixed tourism/residential area, incompatible with hotel and apartments.
Environment Policy 22
Prohibits development unacceptably harming amenity via noise pollution (iii). Assessed against takeaway noise from comings/goings, judged severe impact on residents above and adjacent due to proximity and history of complaints from similar uses.
Environment Policy 35
Permits only development preserving/enhancing Conservation Area character, protecting special features. Officer judged boundary wall opening, signage, and basement takeaway in Victorian terrace detrimental to Promenades CA appearance and locality visual amenities.
Do not oppose - has no traffic management, parking or road safety implications
Comments received - proposed premises must comply with Food Act 1996, Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and register under Food Hygiene Regulations 2007 at least 28 days prior to opening
Comments received - no objection subject to condition restricting hours: hot food takeaway may not operate between 0030 hrs and 1130hrs Monday to Friday and 0300hrs to 1130hrs Saturday and Sunday
no objection in principle subject to conditions on grease trap and no discharge of harmful matter
Isle of Man Constabulary requests restricted operating hours to mitigate crime and disorder risks; Douglas Borough Drainage has no objection subject to grease trap and harmful matter conditions; Department of Transport Highways and Environmental Health Food Safety have no objections.
Key concern: takeaway premises act as 'honey pots' increasing crime and anti-social behaviour
Isle of Man Constabulary Multi Agency Public Protection Team
Conditional No Objectionsuch premises act as 'honey pots' in that they can cause persons to remain in an area for an inordinate period of time, increasing opportunities for criminal or anti-social behaviour to occur; it is imperative that this situation does not occur by default
Conditions requested: The hot food 'takeaway' business may not operate between 0030hrs and 1130hrs Monday to Friday and 0300hrs to 1130hrs Saturday and Sunday
Douglas Borough Council Drainage Services
Conditional No ObjectionGrease Trap; Harmful Matter; it is an offence under Manx legislation to permit the discharge of polluting or harmful matter to any public sewers or watercourses
Conditions requested: No discharges of fat or other food waste which will affect the performance of the public foul sewerage system will be permitted to enter the foul sewer. It will be the responsibility of the developer/occupier of the premises to provide satisfactory means of removal and disposal for such waste; Appropriate measures must be taken by the developer / occupier of the premises to ensure compliance with the legislation
Department of Transport Highways
No ObjectionDo not oppose has no traffic management, parking or road safety implications
Department of Local Government And The Environment Environmental Health Food Safety Unit
No Objectionthe premises must also be registered with the Department at least 28 days prior to opening
Conditions requested: The proposed premises must comply with the requirements of the Food Act 1996 (and associated Regulations) and the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974; In accordance with the Food Hygiene Regulations 2007, the premises must also be registered with the Department at least 28 days prior to opening
The original application 10/00243/B for conversion of part basement to a takeaway outlet at Trevelyan Hotel was refused by the Senior Planning Officer on 13 April 2010 due to harm to residential amenity from noise/disturbance and failure to preserve/enhance the conservation area character contrary to Strategic Plan policies. The appellant argued the proposal reused redundant space amid tourism decline, complied with technical regulations, suited the commercial promenade location with precedents nearby, and had negligible visual impact at basement level. The inspector identified two main issues: conservation area impact and amenity harm from late-night operations. He found the proposal would not preserve/enhance the conservation area character and would cause unacceptable noise/disturbance to hotel guests and nearby residents despite conditions, conflicting with Environment Policy 35 and General Policy 2(g). The appeal was dismissed on 9 August 2010, upholding the refusal.
Precedent Value
This appeal demonstrates strict application of conservation and amenity policies in mixed promenade locations; even minor basement changes introducing hot food takeaways near residential will fail without clear enhancement and viable noise mitigation. Future applicants must provide robust evidence addressing site-specific character change and late-night impacts, not just general area precedents.
Inspector: Graham Self MA MSc FRTPI
