Agenda item

Erection of 2 no. dwelling houses with associated operations. (Amended plans and information, including reduction from three to two dwellings, received 29 July 2020).

Part way through the consideration of this application, members took a vote prior to the meeting guillotine of 8:30pm to continue.

Owing to telecommunication difficulties, Councillor Mike Pighills did not hear full debate and did not vote on this application.

The committee considered application P20/V0369/FUL for the erection of 2 no. dwelling houses with associated operations. (Amended plans and information, including reduction from three to two dwellings, received 29 July 2020), on land adjacent to No.38 Barrow Road, Shippon.

Consultations, representations, policy and guidance, and the site’s planning history were detailed in the officer’s report, which formed part of the agenda pack for the meeting.

The planning officer reported that the application should be considered as a stand-alone application on its own merits, even though a related application had just been determined by the committee. This full application sought the erection of two dwellings on part of the wider paddock site.  It was proposed that the two houses would be built on the area where approved plot 4 under P16/V3165/FUL was to be located, but which under the variation application P20/V0348/FUL would instead be open land.  Therefore, should the variation application and this application be permitted, there would be a total of six dwellings on the paddock site rather than four.

The planning officer reported that the of the Wootton and St Helen Without Neighbourhood Plan recognised that development proposals should take account of locally important vistas, specifically naming Shippon. The planning officer advised that the effect of the application on the vista to Barrow Road was a material consideration and that historically a similar building on this site had been permitted, therefore the committee would need to make a judgment upon its importance when determining this application. The application was not considered to be overdevelopment by officers and was regarded as limited infill.

Councillor Michael Page, a representative of St Helen Without Parish Council spoke objecting to the application. The democratic services officer had sent a statement from the parish council to the committee prior to the meeting.

Mr. Richard Bahu, a local resident, spoke objecting to the application. The democratic services officer had sent a statement from Mr. Bahu to the committee prior to the meeting.

Mr. Alex Cresswell, the agent, spoke in support of the application.

Councillor Catherine Webber, the local ward councillor, spoke objecting to the application.

The committee expressed a concern about the possible loss of a 300-year-old chestnut tree which already was the subject of a tree preservation order. In answer to a question, the agent advised that in the event of permission being granted, steps would be taken to safeguard tree during building works.

The committee had concerns that the application was contrary to the neighbourhood plan, had an impact on the character of the local area because of complexity, clustering and prominence, and represented intensification of the site.  The committee also considered that there would be a harmful effect upon nearby listed buildings and the Barrow Road vista.

A motion moved and seconded, to refuse planning permission was carried on being put to the vote.

RESOLVED: to refuse planning permission for application P20/V0369/FUL, for the following reasons;

1.    The proposal would result in an intensification of development on this part of the site, coupled with the prominent location and complex building design, the development would adversely harm the visual amenity and be harmful to the character of the area and setting of listing buildings.

2.     The intensification of development would have a detrimental effect on views across the site which have been identified as an important local vista in policy SS4 of the Wootton and St Helen Without Neighbourhood Plan.