Agenda and minutes

To record apologies for absence and the attendance of substitute members. 

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Val Shaw.

To receive any announcements from the chair, and general housekeeping matters.

The chair welcomed everyone to the meeting, outlined the procedure to be followed and advised on emergency evacuation arrangements.

To adopt and sign as a correct record the Planning Committee minutes of the meeting held on 24 January 2024. 

RESOLVED: to approve the minutes of the meeting held on the 24 January 2024 as a correct record and agree that the Chair sign these as such.

To receive declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests, other registrable interests and non-registrable interests or any conflicts of interest in respect of items on the agenda for this meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive notification of any matters which the chair determines should be considered as urgent business and the special circumstances which have made the matters urgent. 

There was no urgent business.

To receive any statements from members of the public that have registered to speak on planning applications which are being presented to this committee meeting. 

The committee noted the list of the members of the public who had registered to speak at the meeting.

Internal and external alterations to ancillary garage (originally approved under P21/V2326/HH). Installation of new widened entrance gate piers. Installation of a new septic tank. Replacement of existing driveway and front path with permeable cobbled paving - PART RETROSPECTIVE (amended plans and additional information received 19 and 26 October 2023 and 01, 12 and 30 January 2024).

The committee considered planning application P23/V2120/HH and listed building consent application P23/V2121/LB for internal and external alterations to ancillary garage (originally approved under P21/V2326/HH). Installation of new widened entrance gate piers. Installation of a new septic tank. Replacement of existing driveway and front path with permeable cobbled paving - PART RETROSPECTIVE (amended plans and additional information received 19 and 26 October 2023 and 01, 12 and 30 January 2024) on land at 57 The Causeway, Steventon, OX13 6SE.

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 this meeting.

The planning officer introduced the report and informed the committee that the applications were part retrospective in nature. She went on to illustrate the works which had commenced and those which were proposed.

The site was a Grade II listed property accessed from the north via The Causeway and the northern half of the site was located within a conservation area. Permission for the erection of the garage had been granted in 2021 and the application before the committee proposed no enlargement to the existing garage but the reconfiguration of the doors and windows in the garage as well as a widening of the gate.

The planning officer clarified that no roof lights had been constructed or were proposed above the constructed mezzanine. She went on to inform the committee that, on balance, the application was recommended for approval subject to conditions. The planning officer noted that conditions 5, 6 and 7 had not been included in the officer report due to an administrative error but displayed these for the committee to read.

Liz Rice and Robert Green spoke, objecting to the application.

Councillor Sally Povolotsky, a local ward councillor, spoke on the application.

Due to technical issues, Duncan Wolage, the agent representing the applicant, spoke last in support of the application.

The committee asked the planning officer to comment on the concerns raised about the site being used for commercial purposes. The planning officer advised that the site had been subject to an enforcement investigation and that both an enforcement and planning officer had visited the site. Documents detailing the business location had been shown to the officers and based on all the evidence available to them officers were satisfied that the premises was not being used for commercial purposes. As such the proposed condition on the ancillary and not business use of the garage was deemed to be sufficient.

The committee asked the planning officer if there were any steps which could be taken to address the safeguarding concerns which had been raised. The planning officer advised the committee that whilst the neighbour concerns had been acknowledged there was no harmful overlooking as a result of the proposed window. She informed the committee that the window to window distance was 66 metres with a window to boundary distance of 45 metres, both well in excess of the required 21 metres. The planning officer went  ...  view the full minutes text for item 81.