Agenda item

To determine the application

David Rowen presented the report to members.

Members received a presentation in accordance with the Public Participation Procedure, from Mr Alan Melton the Clerk of Manea Parish Council in support of the application.

Mr Melton stated that members have always sought to encourage well designed and well thought out properties in settlements and on the edge of settlements. He stated that whilst he appreciates what officers have said with regard to the proposal being outside of the development area, under the new proposal, this dwelling will fall within the development area. He expressed the opinion, that as you approach Manea, this dwelling is exactly the type of property that they would like to see. He added that in 10.4 of the officers report it makes reference to the business use, commercial premises and security cameras and that is a subjective view and should be down to the applicant as to whether he wishes to live adjacent to his business.

Mr Melton drew member’s attention to a previous application where approval was given against officer’s recommendation which was classed as an agricultural dwelling. He expressed the opinion that there is no such thing as an agricultural business, they are all business dwellings, it is no longer a vocation, and it is a business. He expressed the view that members need to be consistent when determining planning applications.

Mr Melton added that earlier in the year there was a month of torrential rain and there was no sign of flooding at the proposed site. He stated that he agrees it is a large house, but it is a well-designed house and will enhance the entrance to Manea and it will not mitigate any of the aesthetic appearance of Westfield, Road and it is the sort of house that should be on the outskirts to the village of Manea. He concluded that the Parish Council welcome this type of development and this executive home will support the business and enhance the entrance to the village

David Rowen read out a written representation received from Lee Bevens , the Agent for the application.

Mr Bevens reminded members  that a similar scheme was presented at Planning Committee in August 2019, and this application attempts  to address the reasons for refusal. With reference to refusal reasons 1 and 2 the sequential test argument is not relevant to this scheme as the whole point of the dwelling is to serve the immediate business use at the site, there is little point in putting the dwelling off the site and hopefully members understand this. The dwelling has been raised above ground level to meet all the necessary requirements contained within the supporting flood risk assessment and No objections have been raised by the Environment Agency.

Mr Bevens expressed the view that reason 3 of the previous refusal is slightly ambiguous as the development will make a positive contribution to the local character of the area offering a positive feature to the entrance to the village and help screen the industrial sheds currently seen when approaching Manea. He made the point that, there have been no negative consultee or neighbour responses to the proposal.

Mr Bevens stated that the applicants have been residents of Manea all their lives and purchased Westwood farm over 3 years ago for their businesses with the site being generally in a poor state,, with the front of the site covered in dense scrub and brambles. He made the point that the applicants have invested a great deal of time and money in recent years to improve it, and this has seen other local businesses with local people attracted to the site.

Mr Bevens made the point that there are now a number of businesses using the premises including their own haulage and storage business, a dog grooming business and a forklift business. The forklift business stores emergency forklifts and relies on the premises and the applicant’s business to transports the hire machines 24 hours a day for 365 days a year. These businesses all employ Manea residents and in turn they support the local community.

Mr Bevens explained that the business started with just 1 lorry and now the transport company has some 9 lorries with the subsidiary business storing agricultural produce. He highlighted that members and FDC have been provided with additional letters which demonstrate that the businesses on the site are not only concerned with security, with some million pounds worth of equipment being in the yard. The unattended farm buildings and lorry fleet have been targeted for both theft of items such as tools and also for fuel theft with each lorry holding in excess of £500 worth of fuel which is a common target for thieves in exposed rural areas and a dwelling on site would act as a deterrent.

Mr Bevens stated that his client would like it noting that for 8 months of the year the cold storage units on the site require24 hour monitoring due to inclement weather from climate change which can mean checking and adjusting temperatures up to 6 times a day in any 24 hour period and at the moment this means that Mr Cook makes visits through the day and night. Living on site would allow Mr Cook to walk next door to check the temperatures and the site without disturbance.

Mr Bevens expressed the view that he proposed development would offer an attractive solution to the entrance of Manea when entering the village from Toll Drove, offering a solution that helps obscure the views of the large storage sheds behind the dwelling and garage. In his opinion whilst it is behind prevailing frontage development it is designed as a standalone dwelling to support the business being run from the address and therefore should not be viewed as setting any form of dangerous precedent for future applications in this area.

Mr Bevens expressed the view that the dwelling has been designed to be dual aspect, so as to provide two key elevations of glazing facing the entrance and side road to offer passive surveillance and attractive elevations. He feels the dwelling will help obscure the views of the large storage sheds when entering the village and additional proposed landscaping will assist with the screening and encourage biodiversity and wildlife and has been moved since the previous application to the highest point on the site to further mitigate against flooding concerns.

Mr Bevens made the point that numerous local residents have written in to support the proposal, together with businesses that use the premises and no objections have been received or raised by highways, the Environment Agency, Parish Council or perhaps most importantly immediate neighbours along Westfield Road. He referred to a further raised at the last planning committee by one member, stating that the applicants have no intention to apply for any further dwellings within the yard area, in fact it is more likely that future plans will be to apply for additional small starter business units adding further local employment and benefit to Manea, should it be approved.

Mr Bevens stated that the applicants want to continue to grow their successful family business at the address and this scheme will see the long-term future secured and continue to employ people. He hopes that members will see that the positives of this scheme outweigh the negatives and approve the scheme.

Members made comments, asked questions and received responses as follows;

·         Councillor Benney expressed the opinion that a boundary is not something that is fixed, it is something that moves over time. He added that the best kind of security you can have at a business, is being able to live on site. Councillor Benney expressed the view that from a business perspective, the proposal is something to enhance the business. He expressed the opinion that any surplus money that the applicant may have after selling his bungalow, could be invested into the local economy and that in turn benefits the area by providing additional employment for the local people. He added that by approving this proposal for the applicant to live on site, it will assist and act as a deterrent and in turn reduce crime. The proposal will enhance the area and the view as you arrive into Manea. Councillor Benney concluded by stating that there are no letters of objection at all and the applicant is doing the right thing for his business, for employment and for the village of Manea.

·         Councillor Mrs French concurred with Councillor Benney and stated that she will support this application and approve it.

·         Councillor Connor expressed the view that the only way to ensure your business is secure is to live on site and he will be voting against the officer’s recommendation.

·         Councillor Lynn expressed the opinion that there is the need for diverse housing and for nice housing and he stated that he would like to see more forward thinking with regard to determining applications. He expressed the view that there is the need where people can grow and progress and the applicant deserves to have a home that suits them.

·         Nick Harding highlighted to members that in August last year, one of the reasons planning permission was refused was on flood risk grounds. He stated that member’s decisions should be consistent and in accordance with planning policies unless there are other considerations. Any proposal that members make must identify why the flood risk reason for refusal is outweighed. Members should also consider  that the previous application was refused on its design and appearance, so members need to identify why the small revisions that are in the current scheme make it acceptable.

·         Councillor Sutton stated that he agrees with many of the comments made by other members. Councillor Sutton expressed the view that members need to consider the key issue with regard to flood risk and whether they believe that the proposal is desirable for the company owner to have his house adjacent to his business rather than 200 yards away. Councillor Sutton expressed the opinion that if members think that is the case, then the sequential test becomes irrelevant, as it cannot be built anywhere else, it has to be there to serve its purpose. Councillor Sutton stated that he will be voting against officer’s recommendation.

·         Councillor Benney stated that although the proposal is in flood zone 3, there is mitigation is in place. Manea does not flood and the benefits outweigh the bad and there are many good elements of this application.

·         Councillor Sutton stated that there is a comment in the agenda pack with retard to linear development in Westfield Road. He added that this is not relevant for all sections of the road and highlighted certain properties within the road and also roads in the vicinity of the proposal. He stated that he disagrees with a comment in the officer’s report which states that the majority of Westfield Road is linear. David Rowen stated that Westfield Road is a long road and there are numerous examples of in-depth development within the road, however the report makes reference to the prevailing character of Westfield Road in the vicinity of the application site.

Proposed by Councillor Sutton, seconded by Councillor Mrs French and decided that the application be APPROVED, against the officers recommendation.

Members approved the application against the officer’s recommendation for the following reason; The proposal to increase the business strengthens the view that it is an essential dwelling and the sequential test is therefore void. The Parish Council are supportive of the application and it will improve the area coming into the village of Manea.

Members agreed to delegate authority to officers to apply appropriate conditions in consultation with the Chairman, Vice Chairman and Councillor Sutton and Councillor Mrs French

(Councillor Marks declared a pecuniary interest in this application, by virtue of the fact that the applicants are landlords on this site for one of his businesses, family friends and he has submitted a letter of support for the application, and retired from the meeting for the duration of the discussion and voting thereon).