Agenda item

Change of use & conversion of The Maltings to create flexible commercial (Use Class E)/community (Use Class F2)) uses & parking purposes at basement floor & for residential (Use Class C3) at ground to second floors; with external alterations, extension to existing basement & erection of side extensions up to five storeys (to provide a total of 43 flats). Erection of five-storey building (Malting Mews) with parking at ground floor & residential use (Use Class C3) at first to fourth floors (33 flats).

With the aid of a visual presentation including plans and aerial photographs, the Case Officer identified the site and explained the proposal and relevant planning policies to members. The site is located in conservation area to the south of Dorchester town centre on the wider brewery square development. The development would be retaining and reusing historically important buildings. With Mix use development. Officers had reviewed the scheme and were happy that it applied with highways requirements and the landscaping of the site was considered to be acceptable. The committee was updated regarding the changes to the description of the development on the first page of the report. The description had changed from the erection from five to four storey building and residential use (Use Class C3) at first to fourth floors (33 flats) to (27 flats).

 

 

Public Participation

 

Ms Snow an employee of Dorset Council, represented herself and neighbours and addressed the Committee. Her family lived on Prince of Wales Road since 2022 and she knew when she bought the house that consent had been granted for 11 town houses behind our property and had no objection to this. But since then, numerous applications had been made for a large block of flats instead.

This block would be just 50cm away from the garden wall at 6 Prince of Wales Rd and more than 20m high, stealing our daylight and directly overlooking our gardens and homes. Its scale, mass and proximity feel overwhelmingly dominant and will deprive us of light and privacy. The consented town house scheme had underground parking, built at a lower level and would be far less imposing.

She referenced the original Weymouth Avenue Development Brief states, with regard to Prince of Wales Road, that.

 

“Consideration must be made to the impact of any proposed redevelopment upon these properties, with the aim being to ensure that no significant harm is caused to the amenities of the occupiers.”

 

She informed that the proposal would significantly harm the residents of Prince of Wales Road through deprivation of privacy and other simple freedoms. 

Dorchester’s Civic Society, The Victorian Society, the Town Council and Dorset Council’s own Urban Designer agree that a building of this scale, mass and proximity is unacceptable and is not reflective of ‘mews style’. She explained that this also contradicted the Weymouth Avenue Brief which states:

 

“… plots and positioning, scale and massing, and design and materials used in development need to respect the Listed Buildings, Conservation Area and their settings”.

She showed the market demand for flats vs houses in a mile of DT1 is unbalanced. Today there are 132 flats for sale on Rightmove in DT1 (not including Poundbury) but only 33 terraced or semi-detached 3 plus bedroom houses with gardens and parking.

 

The recently completed adjacent block of flats which impacts numbers 16 – 20 Prince of Wales Road is 15m away from the garden wall. The impact to them is significant (see pic below) but the Maltings Mews will be even higher and just 3m from my garden wall.

 

The officer's report suggested that there would be no significant harm to residential amenities, but it failed to consider the lived experiences of residents and doesn’t consider the original design brief for Brewery Square. The towering presence of this block of flats will create an oppressive environment that will diminish many people’s quality of life.

 

The consented town houses would adequately meet the needs of the community, and will work in harmony with, not against existing surroundings.

 

She urged that the Councillors prioritise the voices of the community and make the right decision for Dorchester’s future and residents and to insist that the original application for the townhouses is upheld and reject the proposal.

 

Mr Williams addressed the Committee. This application was formerly registered for the planning application on the 6^th February 2023 and 2 years and 3 months later a recommendation for this proposal was finally made by the planning department. During this extraordinary extended timescale, the proposal drawings had been allowed by the planning department to be amended 4 times. The proposal as presented before you today still remain visually oppressive and overbearing to the residents of adjacent properties on Prince of Wales Road. The closest part of the proposal is only half a metre from the rear boundary of 6 Prince of Wales Road.

 

The proposed North House would be 1.7 metres higher than the rear gardens on Prince of Wales Road and would be visible to most residents exceeding 30 metres. We are aware that the developer is citing the latest proposal as no higher than the previously approved application which is incorrect as the previously approved clearly detailed the ground levels to be level both sides of the rear boundaries. As previously stated, the developer has raised the ground levels by 1.7 meters which results in their latest proposal being a storey higher than the previously approved.

 

The total number of windows within the proposal would create a continued sense of overlooking from this structure which is considered and would impact on the wellbeing of properties within Prince of Wales Road. The initial supporting data was invalid and when it was correctly remodelled with the ground level increased by 1.7 metres on the proposal site, the levels of natural sunlight were diminished ensuring that it would reduce these levels for the rear ground of properties on Prince of Wales Road. The proposal would not accord with the clear requirements of the Weymouth Avenue supplementary planning document dated 2004, which clearly sets the design standards for this site. The proposal would visually detract from both the adjacent historic asset and the conservation area itself. The proposed structure is visually bland and lacking in any enriching architecture detail. He asked members of the planning committee to object to the proposal.

 

Mr Ackland speaking in support of the applications addressed the Committee. These schemes were the culmination of years of work to comprehensively redevelop this key area of Dorchester. Delivering a high equality and sustainable and well-designed development. It is the final phase of Brewery Square for which the master plan was initially granted outline consent in 2006. Over the years successive phases have developed new homes, commercial space, leisure facilities and an overprovision of affordable housing. The site is sustainably located for residential and flexible commercial uses. It is allocated for development in the local plan and aligns with both local and national policies.

 

He outlined the key benefits such as, social benefits, delivers 70 much needed new homes, helping meet housing demand, creates a mix of uses including commercial and community space, supporting a vibrant and sustainable neighbourhood.

 

Economic benefits: Creates employment opportunities both during and after construction, increases footfall for shops, restaurants, leisure and community spaces.

 

Environmental benefits: repurposes a historic building reducing the need for new materials and provides 119 cycle parking spaces, promoting sustainable transport, introduces comprehensive and sympathetic landscaping, enhancing biodiversity and creating an attractive and inclusive environment/neighbourhood. He was pleased that with the collaborative effort that has gone into shaping this proposal and very much hope that you support it.

 

Members questions and comments

• Cllr Jespersen questioned community space within application, who would manage the space and is there evidence that this cycle storage would be used? She commented that it was disappointing that the art centre had disappeared from the plan
• Cllr Taylor requested that the windows be frosted and obscured. He asked how affordable housing was calculated.
• Cllr Fry asked how far was the building from the gardens and how tall was the building? He commented that the building would have significant impact on the local houses of the community and added that two storey developments would have been better, and Dorchester needed family housing of 2-3 bedrooms.
• Cllr Jespersen informed that three years had been spent working on the application and what had come back was better than what we started with.
• Cllr Major commented that the proposal was overbearing and overdevelopment and would have significant impact on residents and the community.

 

 

Adjournment 12:25-12:37.

 

Cllr Major proposed that the application be refused as the development would result in significant adverse effect on the living conditions of the occupiers of the residential properties on the Prince of Wales Road and occupiers would lose privacy from overlooking and the overbearing impact due to the close proximity of the development and in contrary to the policy EMB16 of the West Dorset and Weymouth Local Plan, Cllr Fry seconded.

 

The proposal to refuse the application had been lost.

 

Having had the opportunity to discuss the merits of the application and an understanding of all this entailed; having considered the officer’s report and presentation; the written representatives; and what they had heard at the meeting, a motion to APPROVE the officer’s recommendation to GRANT planning permission as recommended, was proposed by Cllr Jespersen, and seconded by Cllr Jones. 

 

Decision: To grant planning permission subject to conditions set out in the officer’s report and additional conditions set out below:

 

17. Prior to the installation of any window on the northern elevation of the Maltings Mews, details of the means of permanent opening restrictors on the windows on the northern elevation shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Works shall then proceed in accordance with the approved details and the opening restrictors shall be permanently retained in accordance with the submitted details.

 

Reason: To safeguard the amenity and privacy of the occupiers of adjoining residential property.

 

18. Before the Maltings Mews building is brought into use, all windows in the Northern elevation must be glazed with obscure glass up to 1.4m above finish floor level to a minimum industry standard privacy level 3. Thereafter the obscure glazing shall be permanently retained as such.

 

Reason: To safeguard the amenity and privacy of the occupiers of adjoining residential property.

 

19. The lower ground floor 200m2 flexible Commercial and Community space in the Maltings building shown on drawing number 9547/109 G (The Maltings Amended Proposed Basement floor Plan) shall be used for flexible commercial (Use Class E) and community (Use Class F2) and for no other purpose as per Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987, as amended, or in any provision equivalent to that Class in any statutory instrument revoking and re-enacting that Order.

Reason: The Council considers an unrestricted use may not be compatible with the living conditions of surrounding residential properties and to ensure that the commercial/community element of the proposal is retained.

 

Informative note:

3. The applicant is advised that prior to the development being brought into use, it must comply with the requirements of Building Regulations Approved Document S: Infrastructure for the charging of electric vehicles.