DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 22/00761/B Applicant: Mr D Metcalfe Proposal: Erection of a detached domestic building Site Address: 72 Birch Hill Crescent Onchan Isle Of Man IM3 3DA Planning Officer: Mr Paul Visigah Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 11.08.2022

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 26 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

• C 2. Prior to the commencement of the development hereby approved, details of the doors and windows and wall and roof finishes, shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Department and the development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details and retained as such thereafter. Reason: To ensure that the building's external finish ties in with the existing dwelling on site.
• C 3. The detached building, hereby approved, shall not be occupied at any time other than for purposes incidental to the residential use of the existing dwelling on the application site at 72 Birch Hill Crescent, Onchan, and shall not be occupied as an independent dwelling unit.

Reason: To ensure proper control of the development and to avoid any future undesirable fragmentation of the curtilage.

• C 4. The internal layout of the detached building hereby approved shall remain as shown on the submitted drawings date stamped and received 14 June 2022. No kitchen or bathroom facilities shall be installed in the building and no internal walls shall be erected to subdivide the internal space of the building.

Reason: To ensure proper control of the development and to avoid any future undesirable fragmentation of the curtilage.

This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The proposal is considered to accord with General Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan, Strategic Policy 3 (b) and the principles set out in the Residential Design Guide.

Plans/Drawings/Information;

This decision relates to the Site Location Plan, Photographs, and Plans and Elevation, date stamped and received 14 June 2022. _______________________________________________________________ Interested Person Status – Additional Persons None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report

1.0 THE SITE - 1.1 The application site is the residential curtilage of 72 Birch Hill Crescent, Onchan which is a detached bungalow situated to the northern end of Birch Hill Crescent. The dwelling which is finished externally in spar dash render has its steeply pitched roof finished in concrete roof tiles. Part of the front facing gable, however, has stone facing finish. - 1.2 The property previously had a flat roofed garage situated at the end of its driveway which can take three cars parked in tandem. This building has now been demolished. The rear garden which includes the position of this demolished building overlooks agricultural fields on its entire northern boundary. Large parts of the eastern boundary border the rear garden of No.70 which has mature landscaping, including trees situated on the boundary. - 1.3 The locality is characterised by pitch roofed 1970's to 1980's bungalows with integral or detached flat roofed garages. A number of the dwellings also have flat roofed entrance porches and flat roof dormers.

2.0 THE PROPOSAL - 2.1 The current planning application seeks approval for the erection of a detached domestic building at the position of the now demolished flat roof garage. The proposed building would be positioned 2.2m forward of the demolished garage, and would be moved sideways be 600mm where it would lie on the boundary with the neighbour at No. 70 Birch Hill Crescent. This flat roofed building would be 6.3m long, 4.4m wide, and be 2.4m high to the top of the flat roof. A door and window would be installed on the west elevation with views to the east elevation of the main dwelling and parts of the rear garden. No details have been provided to indicate the external finish and door/window types, and material.

3.0 PLANNING POLICY - 3.1 The site lies within an area zoned as Predominantly Residential on the Area Plan for the East (Map 4), and the site is not within a Conservation Area. The site is not prone to flood risks or within a registered tree area, and there are no registered trees on site. Given the nature of the application it is appropriate to consider the following policies of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016. - 3.2 General Policy 2 (GP2) (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:

• (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; (k) does not prejudice the use or development of adjoining land in accordance with the appropriate Area Plan; (n) is designed having due regard to best practice in reducing energy consumption.

3.3 Strategic Policy 3: Proposals for development must ensure that the individual character of our towns and villages is protected or enhanced by: (b) having regard in the design of new development to the use of local materials and character. - 3.4 Transport Policy 7: The Department will require that in all new development, parking provision must be in accordance with the Department's current standards.

• 3.4.1 The current standards are set out in Appendix 7: Typical Residential - 2 spaces per unit, at least one of which is retained within the curtilage and behind the front of the dwelling.

3.5 Other policies within the Strategic Plan which are considered relevant in the assessment of the proposal are; Infrastructure Policy 5, Community Policy 11, Community Policy 7 and Community Policy 10.

- 4.0 OTHER MATERIAL CONSIDERATIONS

4.1 Whilst not adopted planning policy, DEFA's Residential Design Guidance is a material consideration in the assessment of this application as, "It is intended to apply to any residential development within existing villages and towns, including individual houses, conversions and householder extensions". Sections 2.0 on sustainable construction, 4.7 on Flat Roof Extensions, and 7.0 which deal with impact on neighbouring properties are considered relevant to the current scheme. - 5.0 PLANNING HISTORY

5.1 Planning approval was granted for alterations and extension of conservatory (retrospective). This flat roofed conservatory sits to the rear of the dwelling and directly abuts the proposed development area. - 6.0 REPRESENTATIONS Copies of representations received can be viewed on the Government's website. This report contains summaries only.

6.1 Representation from the Department of Infrastructure (DOI) Highways Division confirms that there is 'No Highway Interest' in a letter dated 24 June 2022.

6.2 Onchan Commissioners have recommended that the application be approved for planning purposes (12 July 2022). - 6.3 No comments have been received from neighbouring properties.

- 7.0 ASSESSMENT

7.1 The fundamental issues to consider in the assessment of this planning application are;

• i. The visual impact of the proposed development on the existing dwelling and streetscene (GP2, SP 3 & RDG);

• ii. The impact upon the neighbouring amenities (GP 2g); and
• iii. Impact on Highway safety (GP 2 & TP7)

7.2 Visual impact

• 7.2.1 In terms of visual impacts, it is considered that the proposed detached building would have a flat roof over, reflecting the design of the now demolished garage. It is also considered that the detached building would be contained to the rear garden area, although it would be at a position that would be apparent from the abutting highway. This new building is not considered to be at variance with the character of the existing dwelling and site to which it would be erected, given that the main dwelling has a flat roofed element (the rear conservatory) which is apparent from the surrounding fields, although it is noted that the conservatory is not noticeable from the immediate streetscene.
• 7.2.2 Granting it would have been more appropriate to have a pitched roofed over the building to offer an improved appearance over the now demolished garage, the scheme as proposed would be integrated into the site, and the level and scale of development proposed is not considered to significantly alter the existing situation on site. As such, it is not judged to cause harm to the appearance of the main dwellinghouse.
• 7.2.3 Likewise, the design, scale and finish of the detached building would be in keeping with the character of the area which is characterised by 1970's/1980's dwellings with flat roofed elements. It would be vital to note that the locality has a significant number of flat roofed structures, thus, it is not considered that the scheme as proposed would be at variance with the character of the locality. Given the above, it is considered that the requirements of GP2 (b & c), Strategic Policy 3 (b) and the RDG are met in this regard.

7.3 Impact on neighbouring amenity

• 7.3.1 In terms of the impact of the proposed scheme on neighbouring amenity, it is considered that the proposed building would be erected on the boundary with No. 70 and as such holds the potential to result in overbearing impacts on this neighbour when viewed from their rear garden. However, the boundary with this neighbour consists of mature landscaping which would screen this development from this neighbouring rear garden. As such, it is not considered that overbearing impacts would result.
• 7.3.2 It is also considered that the properties in this area are laid out such that most of the garages and other structures on site are situated on the boundaries or within close proximity to the boundaries. As such, it is not considered that the new detached building would be averse to the character of the locality or result in adverse impacts on the neighbour considering it would only replicate an existing relationship between buildings in the locality.
• 7.3.3 Additionally, the new windows proposed would not result in overlooking impacts as they would be overlooking the eastern elevation of the existing dwelling and rear garden.
• 7.3.4 Based on the foregoing, it is considered that the proposed scheme would not introduce any privacy concerns for the neighbours and there would be no loss of light or impacts on outlook as a result of the development; thus the works would conform to GP 2 (g) of the Strategic Plan and the relevant sections of the Residential Design Guide.

7.4 Highway Impact

• 7.4.1 With regard to Highway impact, it is noted that the repositioning of the detached building would result in a decrease of the area available for parking of vehicles. However, the site would still have access to at least two parking spaces which is within the required limits for a residential curtilage. Besides, the comments from DOI Highways clearly indicates that there is no highway interest, which suggests that there are no highway safety or parking concerns with the scheme. As such, it is considered that the proposed scheme would conform to General policy 2 (h & i) and Transport Policy 7.

7.5 Other Matters

• 7.5.1 No new confined spaces with easy access to those outside the site would be created, which would serve as easy hideouts for criminal activity or antisocial behaviour. Likewise, the scheme would not impede access to rear of the dwelling in case of fire since there is provision for access to the rear garden, with a clear break created between the application property and the neighbouring property, which would be sufficient to prevent easy spread of fire. As such, it is considered that the scheme aligns with the requirements of Community Policies 7, 10, and 11.

• 7.5.2 No other concerns have been noted.
• 8.0 CONCLUSION

8.1 The proposed development is considered to comply with paragraph 8.12.1 and General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and meets with the tests of the advice set out in the Residential Design Guide. The application is therefore recommended for approval. - 9.0 INTERESTED PERSON STATUS

9.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019, the following persons are automatically interested persons:

• (a) the applicant (including an agent acting on their behalf);
• (b) any Government Department that has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (c) the Highways Division of the Department of Infrastructure;
• (d) Manx National Heritage where it has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (e) Manx Utilities where it has made written representations that the Department considers material;
• (f) the local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated; and
• (g) a local authority adjoining the authority referred to in paragraph (f) where that adjoining authority has made written representations that the Department considers material. 9.2 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 above who should be given Interested Person Status

I can confirm that this decision has been made by the Head of Development Management in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation and that in making this decision the Officer has agreed the recommendation in relation to who should be afforded Interested Person Status

Decision Made : Permitted Date : 12.08.2022 Determining officer

Signed : S BUTLER Stephen Butler Head of Development Management

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