Officer Report

Application No.: 15/00480/D Applicant: Food Programme Delivery Orchid Group Proposal: Alterations and installation of additional illuminated signage to existing signage Site Address: The Co-Operative Food Bay View Road Port St. Mary Isle of Man IM9 5AE Case Officer : Miss Melissa McKnight Site Visit: 26.05.2015 Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation

Officer’s Report

1.0 THE APPLICATION SITE - 1.1 The application site is the curtilage of the Co-operative Store, a single storey building located on the south western side of Bay View Road in Port St Mary. The site also lies within the proposed Port St Mary Conservation Area. - 1.2 Elan House, an Indian Restaurant with residential above adjoins the application site on the north eastern elevation. - 1.3 The building has existing signage above the window that stretches the full width of the building and is illuminated via a trough light. There is also a projecting sign and vinyl signage in the main window.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL - 2.1 Consent is sought for the installation of additional information to the existing signage above the window and door and to the existing projecting sign. The additional information includes new vinyl opening hours to the sign above the window and door and the addition of the word 'food' underneath the existing wording on the projecting sign. The opening hours letters would be opaque blue vinyl lettering and the lettering to the projector sign would be fret cut, flush inlaid acrylic with green filter. - 2.2 The proposal also comprises the installation of two new trough lights above the main signage and the replacement of the existing fluorescent tubes within the projector sign and the installation of new LED internal lighting. - 2.3 All existing external signage will be removed and be deep cleaned.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 The application site has been the subject of a number of previous planning applications, two of which related to signage which were both granted planning permission and have been listed below:

PA 08/00522/D: Installation of illuminated signage. PA 01/00271/D: Erection of shop signs.

4.0 PLANNING POLICY - 4.1 In terms of local plan policy, the application site is within an area zoned as Mixed Use under the Area Plan for the South 2013. As previously mentioned, the site also lies within the proposed Port St Mary Conservation Area. - 4.2 In terms of strategic plan policy, the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 contains four policies that are considered specifically relevant to the assessment of this current planning application:

General Policy 2 states: "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:

• (a) is in accordance with the design brief in the Area Plan where there is such a brief;
• (b) respects the site and surroundings in terms of the siting, layout, scale, form, design and landscaping of buildings and the spaces around them;
• (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; (i) does not have an unacceptable effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways.

• General Policy 6 states: "Within our towns and villages, the display of external advertisements will be permitted on the site or building to which they relate provided they:

• (a) are of a high standard of design and materials and relate well to the building and site on which they are to be displayed;
• (b) are in keeping with and do not detract from the surrounding area; and
• (c) are located so as not to cause a highway safety hazard."

• General Policy 7 states: "Within our towns and villages, the display of external advertisements on sites or buildings other than those to which they relate will not generally be permitted."

Environment Policy 37 states: "As a general policy, advertisements within Conservation Areas will be permitted if:

• i) the proposal preserves or enhances the Conservation Area;
• ii) the signage is in a style appropriate to the character of the area;
• iii) traditional materials and finishes are used and glossy and highly reflective materials are excluded from proposals; and
• iv) internally illuminated box fascia and projecting box signs are excluded from the proposals".

5.0 REPRESENTATIONS - 5.1 Port St Mary Commissioners have no objection to the current planning application (14/05/2015). - 5.2 The Department of Infrastructure Highways Division does not oppose the current planning application (12/05/2015).

6.0 ASSESSMENT - 6.1 The key issues to consider in the assessment of this application are the impacts of the proposed signage on the appearance of the existing building and character and appearance of the surrounding area and proposed Conservation Area. - 6.2 The existing signage would be retained and deep cleaned to provide a fresher and cleaner look to the existing. The additional lettering to be installed would be finished in a style to complement the existing lettering. The proposed additional information would not be uncommon to find on shop signage and is a common informative feature on the majority of Co-operative signs. It is considered that this element of the proposal is acceptable and deemed unobjectionable. - 6.3 The new trough lighting is considered to be a significant improvement over the existing white trough light. The green trough lighting would blend in with the green fascia of the signage and which would assist in softening the appearance of the lights. - 6.4 Although internally illuminated box signs and projecting signs are not welcomed in Conservation Areas, one must have regard to the fact that the site is not in a formally designated Conservation Area and the projecting sign with internal illumination is existing. There are also a number of other projecting signs along Bay View Road. - 6.5 The illumination would not be prominent within the street scene and the illumination of the signs could be controlled by condition to protect the amenity of the area. Bay View Road is one of the main shopping streets and thoroughfares in Port St Mary so shop and street illumination is not uncommon and for that reason the proposal is judged to be acceptable and not considered to adversely affect the visual amenity of the street scene or public amenity in general.

7.0 RECOMMENDATION - 7.1 Overall it is concluded that the planning application accords to the provisions of General Policy 2, General Policy 6, General Policy 7 and Environment Policy 37 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2007 and as such it is recommended that consent be granted.

8.0 PARTY STATUS - 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013 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) The Highways Division of the Department of Infrastructure; and
• (e) The local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated.

Recommendation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation:

04.06.2015

Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal

C : Conditions for approval

• N : Notes attached to conditions R : Reasons for refusal
• O : Notes attached to refusals

• C 1. The advertisement(s) hereby granted consent shall be begun before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice. Reason: To avoid the accumulation of unimplemented advertisement consents.
• C 2. The advertisement(s) hereby granted consent shall not be illuminated outside the hours of 08.00 and 22.00; or when the premises are closed to the public. Reason: In the interests of amenity and/or public safety.
• C 3. The sign(s) hereby granted consent shall not be lit by an intermittent source. Reason: In the interests of amenity and/or public safety.

This approval relates to Location and Site Plan and DWG No: 1/1 all date stamped as received 30th April 2015.

I confirm that this decision accords with the appropriate Government Circular delegating functions to Director of Planning and Building Control /Head of Development Management/ Senior Planning Officer.

Decision Made : Permitted Date : 04.06.2015 Determining officer (delete as appropriate) Signed :…………………………………….. Chris Balmer Senior Planning Officer Signed :…………………………………….. Sarah Corlett Senior Planning Officer Signed : Michael Gallagher Michael Gallagher Director of Planning and Building Control Signed :…………………………………….. Jennifer Chance Head of Development Management