Agenda item

Erection new dwelling. Construct swimming pool and pool plant house. Alterations and extensions to Dower House to provide enhanced internal accommodation; part demolition including existing boiler room, utility room, conservatory, garage, walling, structures within courtyard and detached outbuilding. Reinstatement of carriageway, gates and piers and boundary enclosure; erection of bike stores.

The Lead Project Officer presented the application for the erection of a new dwelling and alternations to an existing dwelling on the Parnham Estate.

Members were shown the location of the application site and an aerial view of the area with the site boundaries highlighted. The site fell within the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and outside the Defined Development Boundary. It was also noted that the setting of Parnham House was Grade I listed, the Registered Park and Gardens Grade II* listed and Dower House was Grade II listed.

Photographs of Parnham House were shown, and it was explained that a fire in 2017 had caused extensive internal damage to the building and restoration work was currently ongoing. The Lead Project Officer explained the location of Dower House in relation to Parnham House and provided plans outlining the parts of the dwelling which were proposed to be demolished. Photographs of the tracks linking the two buildings, the access and parking area were also shown.

An application for an extension to the Dower House was approved in 2021 and the current plans were similar in regard to design, scale and materials to the approved application from 2021. The floorplans and elevations of the proposed new dwelling were shown to members, it was explained that it would be a more modern design but use similar materials to the existing Dower House. Both dwellings were intended to be used as holiday lets.

The Lead Project Officer explained that the new dwelling was considered to cause less than substantial harm to Parnham House, Dower House and the Registered Park and Gardens. The new building would approximately double the footprint of the development at the entrance to the estate and the scale of the development was considered to be harmful to the setting of the listed buildings. The public benefits of the application were considered to be limited and included the economic benefits of providing a single holiday let accommodation to the area, increasing choice of holiday accommodation and a biodiversity net gain. It was not considered that the public benefits outweighed the harm caused to the heritage assets.

Public representations were received from the applicant, Mr Grant, Cllr Monks Chairman of Beaminster Town Council and Cllr Alford the member of the adjacent ward to the application site, who all spoke in support of the application. It was highlighted that this application was necessary to create a sustainable business that would in turn support the restoration of Parnham House and the importance of the economic benefits that the application would bring to Beaminster.

In response to questions from members the Lead Project Officer provided the following responses:

·       The historic route linking Parnham House with Dower House contributed to the setting of Parham House and held heritage value and therefore it was considered there was some harm being caused by the additional dwelling.

·       A Section 106 would be needed to link the proposed dwelling as holiday accommodation to the Parnham estate to ensure that it could not be sold separately, should the committee decide to grant permission.

·       The Dorset Council Highways team expressed concern at the initial application, however subject to a condition restricting the access to the site to a single dwelling, so as not to increase the vehicle movements on that junction, they had no objections.

Members felt that the new dwelling would be in keeping with the Dower House in terms of size and appearance and therefore would not detract from the entrance to Parnham Estate. The extra revenue would also further support the applicant in restoring Parnham House.

Several members of the committee expressed their support for the application, based on the economic benefits and the less than substantial harm that was considered to be caused to the setting of the listed buildings and the registered park and gardens.

There was an adjournment from 11:16 – 11:27 to allow the planning officers to consider the wording of the proposal.

Members considered that less than substantial harm to the setting of Parnham House, the Dower House and the Registered Park and Gardens was outweighed by the public benefits (economic) of the construction of one unit of holiday accommodation.

The Lead Project Officer presented the planning conditions, should the committee decide to approve the application.

Proposed by Cllr Worth and seconded by Cllr Ireland.

Decision:

A)   That authority be delegated to the Head of Planning or the Service Manager for Development Management and Enforcement to grant planning permission subject to the completion of a legal agreement under section 106 of the Town and County Act 1990 (as amended) in a form to be agreed by the Legal Services Manager to secure the tying of the proposed holiday-let to Parnham House so that it cannot be sold off separately.

And subject to conditions set out in the appendix to these minutes.

B)   That authority be delegated to the Head of Planning or the Service Manager for Development Management and Enforcement to refuse planning permission for the reason set out in the Committee Report if the legal agreement is not completed within 6 months of the committee resolution or such extended time as agreed by the Head of Planning or Service Manager for Development Management and Enforcement.

Cllr Dunseith left the meeting at 11:43