Loading document...
APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL IN PRINCIPLE FOR RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT ON THE SITE OF THE FORMER LANCASHIRE HOTEL AND FURNESS COTTAGE, NEWTOWN, SANTON AND ADJACENT LAND TO THE WEST
PLANNING STATEMENT
December 2012
Hugh Logan Architects Bridge Court 10 Bridge Street Castletown Isle of Man IM9 1AX
1.0 Introduction 2.0 The Site 3.0 Access 4.0 Drainage 5.0 Public Open Space 6.0 Planning Policy 7.0 Planning History and Precedent 8.0 Merits of the Proposal
1.1 This is a proposal for approval in principle for residential development of land in Newtown, Santon, Isle of Man. It is intended that the provision of affordable housing on this site exceeds the 25% minimum laid down by the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007, subject to agreement with, and the requirements of, the Department of Social Care.
1.2 An indicative site layout, drawing No 1255-01A is provided with this application, as supporting information only. This layout provides 40 dwellings in a mixture of two and three bedroomed types.
2.1 The application site is c.3.3 acres in area and an average of 192m long and 55m wide running lengthwise westwards from the A5 road down to the site of an existing Isle of Man Water and Sewerage Authority (IOMWSA) sewage pump station.
2.2 To the north of the site lies existing residential development in the form of the Newtown public housing closer to the A5 road, and more recently constructed private housing in Ballanoa Meadows. The application site is contiguous with and extends the same distance west as these developments combined.
2.3 The underlying topography of the site falls westwards from the main A5 road down to the sewage pump station in the valley below.
2.4 Over several years the application site has been subject to significant tipping of spoil from demolition sites, which has resulted in an unsightly raising of the site levels, very little of which is natural. Subsequently much unlicensed tipping of assorted waste has occurred. Photographs of the site can be found in Appendix A.
3.1 The location for a suitable road access from the main A5 road with acceptable visibility splays has been agreed with the Department of Infrastructure: Highways Division (see Appendix F). This is shown on Location Plan No. 1255-00A.
4.1 By Agreement with IOMWSA, foul drainage can be taken by gravity fall straight to the sewage pump station at the western end of the site (see Appendix E).
4.2 By agreement with IOMWSA, and subject to the granting of a suitable license, storm water drainage can be discharged at the south-west corner, into the adjacent field drain and water course (see Appendix G).
5.1 Based on the accommodation in the Indicative Site Layout drawing No 1255-01A, the Open Space requirement taken from Appendix 6 to the Isle of Man Strategic Plan is 3,200 sq m made up as follows:
| Formal Open Space (eg. pitches) | 1800 sq m. |
| Children’s Play Space | 600 sq m. |
| Amenity Space | 800 sq m. |
5.2 Paragraph A.6.6 of Appendix 6 advises that there are three possibilities for the provision of open space being,
1) Provided on site 2) Provide off site but adjacent or close to the development 3) Provided by payment of a commuted sum to enable the local Authority to provide the open space on behalf of the developer.
The latter of these options can be provided by the developer as agreed works as part of a Section 13 Agreement.
5.3 Paragraph A.6.6.1 of Appendix 6 says that,
'Where possible, open space should be provided in the first instance on-site or off-site where this would improve the quality of the development and the open space provided. Where the first two options are not practical then commuted sums will be considered.'
5.4 Consultation has taken place with Santon Commissioners (see Appendix K) who have advised of a need for a playing field for older children. It is proposed to provide this at the western end of the site adjacent to the sewage pump station as indicated on the Indicative Site Layout drawing No. 1255-01A. The area set aside for this equates to the 1800 sq m. requirement for Formal Open Space on the application site. This will be provided well away from the main A5 highway.
5.5 Within the Indicative Site Layout drawing No. 1255-01A, there is provision for up to 2,200 sq m of Amenity Space, 800 sq m. more than the combined Children's Play and Amenity Space requirement for the application site. More than half of this is adjacent to the Ballanoa Meadows and public housing to the north of the application site. The residents of both these developments would share in the benefit of this provision.
5.6 To the north-west corner of the site there is an existing and very well equipped Children's Play Area owned and operated by Santon Commissioners, which serves the adjacent Ballanoa Meadows to the north of the application site. It can also well serve development of the application site without enhancement. To achieve this, access will be required across land and a pump station access road owned by the Isle of Man Sewerage and Water Authority (IOMWSA). It has been agreed with IOMWSA that access to the existing Children's Play Area will be allowed and will be gated to protect the route from occasional maintenance traffic. (see Appendix E).
5.7 The existing Public Open Space at the north-east corner is owned, together with the adjacent public housing, by the Department of Social Care. This could benefit from some sensitive enhancement as part of the scheme. The Department of Social Care has indicated their agreement in principle to accept a scheme of enhancement, subject to consultation with residents and agreed detail (see Appendix H).
6.1 The principal planning policy documents relating to this application are the Isle of Man Strategic Plan of July 2007 (the Strategic Plan) and the 1982 Development Plan. The Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 came into force later than the 1982 Development Plan; however, land use is designated in the relevant Area Plan, which in this case is the 1982 Development Order, which came into force before the Strategic Plan.
6.2 Paragraph 1.4.4 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 states that,
> 'In the case of any inconsistency between the provisions of the Strategic Plan and the provisions of an Area Plan, whichever came into force later will prevail.'
The Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 came into force later than the 1982 Development Order and therefore prevails in the event of any inconsistency.
6.3 Strategic Policy 1 of the Strategic Plan requires that,
> 'Development should make the best use of resources by: > > (a) optimising the use of previously developed land, redundant buildings, unused and under-used land and buildings, and re-using scarce indigenous building materials; > > (b) ensuring efficient use of sites, taking into account the needs for access, landscaping, open space and amenity standards; and
(c) being located so as to utilise existing and planned infrastructure, facilities and services. This proposal would satisfy all of these requirements on a site eminently suitable for sustainable development. 6.4 Strategic Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan requires that,
'New development will be located primarily within our existing towns and villages, or, where appropriate, in sustainable urban extensions of these towns and villages.'
Newtown is identified in Spatial Policy 4 as a village suitable for development to meet local needs for housing.
6.5 Housing Policies 1, 2 and 3 of the Strategic Plan identify a need for 6,000 houses to be provided in the Island as a whole between 2001 and 2016. Of this figure, 2,500 are to be provided in the East which includes Newtown. The Department of Infrastructure conducts regular reviews to check on progress towards these targets, the latest of these being Residential Land Availability 2011 (Update 4 to the Residential Land Availability Study 2007).
6.6 The Residential Land Availability Study considers a number of factors including planning approvals granted, planning approvals not taken up, demolitions and windfalls to produce projections up to 2016 for the whole Island and for each Area, which are in turn broken down into Parishes. Whilst it is currently projected that the East will exceed it's requirement of 2,500 houses by 166 units, the Parish of Santon has made very little contribution to this target. Table Set 4 – East taken from Update 4 (see Appendix I) show that only 10 new units have been approved in Santon during the period 2001-2011, 9 conversions and 1 new house in the countryside. This is primarily because very little land in Santon was designated for residential use in the 1982 Development Order. The Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 has since introduced new considerations, which need to be taken into account.
6.7 Housing Policy 4 of the Strategic Plan requires that new housing be located primarily in existing towns and villages. These settlements are identified and listed in paras. A.3.5 and A.3.6 of Appendix 3. Newtown is included in this list. To meet with this requirement it is reasonable to give consideration to increasing the extent of land available for new housing in Newtown.
6.8 Spatial Policy 4 of the Strategic Plan sets out a list of villages in which,
'...development should maintain the existing settlement character and should be of an appropriate scale to meet local needs for housing and limited employment opportunities'
Newtown is included in this list and is therefore an appropriate place for sustainable development. To meet with this requirement it is reasonable to give consideration to increasing the extent of land available for new housing in Newtown. This issue is dealt with in more detail in Section 8.
6.9 Appendix 6 of the Strategic Plan sets out requirements for the provision of Open Space in New Residential Development which should, where possible, be provided on site, although there is provision for the requirement to be provided off site but adjacent or close to the development. The specific requirements for Open Space as they apply to this proposal are considered in Section 5.
6.10 Housing Policy 5 of the Strategic Plan requires that,
'In granting planning permission on land for residential development or in predominantly residential areas the Department will normally require that 25% of provision should be made up of affordable housing. This policy will apply to developments of up to 8 dwellings or more.'
A meeting has been held with the Department of Social Care (see Appendix D) who indicated that this site would be a desirable location for affordable housing. A standard form of Section 13 Agreement is available for timely execution in the case of applications for approval in principle.
6.11 Environment Policy 1 of the Strategic Plan requires that,
'The countryside and its ecology will be protected for its own sake...'
This only applies to countryside, which is outside the settlements defined in Appendix 3 at A.3.6., and does not, therefore apply to Newtown.
6.12 Environment Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan requires that within Areas of High Landscape or Coastal Value and Scenic Significance (AHLV’s)
The protection of the character of the landscape will be the most important consideration unless it can be shown that:
(a) the development would not harm the character and quality of the landscape; or (b) the location for the development is essential
Whilst the location for the development is not essential, it will improve a blighted and unsightly site, which is immediately adjacent to open countryside and lies within an Area of High Landscape or Coastal Value and Scenic Significance. In doing so it will enhance the character and quality of the landscape, which is the underlying intention of the policy.
7.1 A previous planning application number PA 02/02224/A (Appendix B) was refused on review in 2002 for the following Reasons:
Copyright in submitted documents remains with their authors. Request removal
View as Markdown