To consider the applications listed below for planning permission
Minutes:
The Committee considered application 3/17/0848/FUL, which was a hybrid planning application for:-
· Full application for 44 dwellings with associated roads, footways, amenity areas, parking, open space, a drainage pumping station and a sustainable urban drainage system with surface water attenuation ponds in the eastern sector of the site as well as the provision of a principal access road from Leigh road as per the scheme approved under ref 3/14/1097/FUL other than the amended surface water drainage arrangements and ; · Outline planning application for a First School of 1.2 hectares in extent with means of access via the road and footway system incorporated in the accompanying full application and other matters reserved :- all as part of the development provided for under Policy WWMC8 of the Christchurch and East Dorset Local Plan Part 1 - Core Strategy (2014) |
at Leigh Road, Colehill, Wimborne.
The Committee were informed that the application had been referred to the Committee by the Head of Planning due to the scale of development and in the public interest.
With the aid of a visual presentation, and taking account the detail in the report, officers provided context of what the main proposals, principles and planning issues of the development were; how these were to be progressed; how the development would contribute to meeting housing needs; and what this entailed. The presentation focused on not only what the development entailed and its detailed design, but what effect it would have on residential amenity and the character the area, taking into account the policies against which this application was being assessed, including the Development Plan: Christchurch and East Dorset Core Strategy (Part 1) 2014, National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) 2019 and the Dorset Heathlands Planning Framework SPD 2020-2025, East Dorset New Neighbourhood Masterplan 2012 and accorded with policies on Housing Delivery, Affordable Housing and Housing Mix.
The officer provided a series of updates in that:
· the application was within the Colehill and Wimborne East Ward
· that the site was wholly within Flood Zone 2
· that the trigger for a viability study was if the 44th dwelling had not been commenced which would be secured by a legal agreement
· that Dorset Waste Services had agreed with the officer assessment in paragraph 8.11 and
· that Condition 2 had been clarified to read “….that the two speed reducing bends to the south west and the south east ”.
Plans and photographs provided an illustration of the location, orientation,
dimensions – form, bulk, size and mass - and appearance of the development
and of the individual properties, with examples being given of how typical
properties would be designed, along with their ground floor plans; how it
would look; proposed street scenes; the materials to be used; access and
highway considerations; environmental considerations; drainage
and water management considerations, the means of landscaping, screening and
open space provision; local amenity provision; what arrangements there were for
the provision of the First School and the development’s setting within that
part of Colehill/Wimborne Minster, the wider landscape, Dorset Heathland and
Green Belt considerations, for the sports facilities of the school. The school site would be slightly elevated so as to better manage surface water and drainage. Whilst the
application was being considered in the whole, the presentation focused on the
three elements: housing, the school and the access
arrangements – and how each would complement the others
Officers showed the
development’s relationship with other adjacent residential
development and how the
buildings were designed to be in keeping with the
characteristics of the
established local environment. The characteristics and
topography of the site was
shown and its relationship with the highway
network. Views into the site
and around it was shown, which provided a satisfactory understanding of all
that was necessary.
Moreover, with regard to financial information of the benefits of the proposal, the following were considered to be material to the application with contributions to be secured through Section 106 legal agreement:
• Affordable housing - £110,000
• Education - £235,200
• Education Land - £60,000
In summary, the officer’s
assessment considered the acceptability of the proposal in relation to the
Development Plan, taken as a whole, and all other materials considerations,
with this being considered in relation to the social, economic, and
environmental benefits to be provided by the proposal. Therefore, it was
considered the proposal was acceptable in relation to material planning
considerations with all significant planning matters having been appropriately,
or adequately, addressed so this formed the basis of the recommendation being
made by officers to approve the application.
The Committee were notified of
written submissions and officers read these direct to the Committee – being
appended to these minutes. Having heard what was said, officers responded to
some of the pertinent issues raised, being confident that each one could be
addressed by the provisions of the application.
One of the two Local Ward members, Councillor Maria Roe, took the opportunity to address the Committee, objecting on two grounds: flooding and highways. She raised concerns about how flooding might compromise the site and, whilst mitigation measures were proposed, as it was seen to be a floodplain, did not believe that consideration should be given to building there as parts of Wimborne Minster East were experiencing more frequent flooding and seemingly the drainage system was unable to cope from the surface water when there was heavy rainfall. She considered there was a need to keep natural floodplains because they enable water to drain away naturally into the land. She was also concerned that the local road network capacity would be compromised too from this development.
Formal consultation had seen an
objection from Colehill Parish Council, regarding concerns about flood
risk and lack of sufficient parking and from Wimborne Minster Town Council who, whilst not
objecting, had raised issues they considered required attention. Public
objections received related to parking and highway considerations, flooding and the development’s effect on amenity.
The opportunity was then given
for members to ask questions of the presentation and what they had heard, in
seeking clarification of aspects so
as to have a better
understanding in coming to a decision.
Some important points raised,
some of which they considered still required clarification, were:-
• how access
arrangements and traffic flows would be managed and what effect there would be
on the highway network and how this had been assessed
• how
flooding, surface water and drainage issues would be satisfactorily managed,
particularly in respect of the area around Leigh Road, which already
experienced issues before, very recently in some cases
•
how the elevation
of the school site might impact, both positively and negatively, on drainage
and water management
• the
connectivity of the site to Wimborne and Colehill and to local amenities
•
what
considerations had been given to building within the Green Belt and the
implications for this
•
what energy
efficient measures were being applied
•
an assurance that
the management and a maintenance of the development’s internal road network
would be achieved satisfactorily and would be of adoptable standards
•
an assurance that
trees would be retained wherever possible and practical
•
that the
attenuation pond would be routinely managed, maintained and monitored, as
necessary
•
how the S106
contributions would be applied and allocated and particularly how the
affordable housing element of the application could be best applied
Officers addressed the questions
raised – and what clarification was needed - providing what they considered to
be satisfactory answers, which the Committee understood to be, and saw, as
generally acceptable.
Of importance was that officers
considered the flooding, water management and drainage issues of the
development, and particularly the school, to be addressed by virtue of
conditions and by the elevation of the land on the school site and, having
assessed the available evidence thoroughly, were confident that those concerns
relating to water management could be satisfactorily addressed, with sufficient
mitigation arrangements being built into the conditions.
Similarly given the assurance
by the Highways Officer that the highway and traffic management issues could be
successfully accommodated as part of the development and having analysed the
evidence in respect of this, officers were satisfied that this had been
suitably assessed.
Officers informed members that if practicable green energy provision would be given consideration and applied as necessary generated from renewable, low-carbon, and decentralised energy sources, with district heating and/or power facilities being considered too.
Officers were confident that regarding those issues and concerns raised by Members the application of the conditions and informative notes to any grant of permission would satisfactorily address all of those issues.
Members were advised that whilst the attenuation pond would
not necessarily be routinely managed, it was in the interest of residents to
report any issue they considered required attention.
From debate, the majority of
the Committee considered the proposal to be acceptable - understanding the
fundamental issue of housing land supply, and in making the best use of the
land available – and considered that this development would significantly
contribute and could be seen to be a betterment in meeting the identified
housing supply need within Dorset and should be seen to be beneficial, an asset
to the town and to the needs of its residents. The benefits of the town having
a new first school were evident too.
Having had the opportunity to
discuss the merits of the application and an
understanding of all this entailed;
having taken into account the officer’s report
and presentation; the written
representations; and what they had heard at the
meeting, in being proposed by
Councillor Barry Goringe and seconded by
Councillor Mike Dyer, on being
put to the vote, the Committee agreed unanimously - by 9:0 - to be minded to
grant permission, subject to the conditions set out in paragraph 13 of the
officer’s report and in the officer’s presentation update, with the enactment
of their ‘minded to’ decision being made by the Service Manager for Development
Management and Enforcement.
Resolved
1a)That planning permission be minded
to be granted, subject to the conditions set out in paragraph 13 of
the report and in the officer’s presentation update, and the completion of a
legal agreement under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as
amended) in a form to be agreed by the Legal Services Manager to secure the
following:
• Affordable housing - £110,000
• Education - £235,200
• Education Land - £60,000
Or
1b) Refuse permission if
the legal agreement under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990
(as amended) is not completed by 6 months from the date of the Committee or
such extended time as agreed by the Head of Planning.
2)Having taken into
consideration the Committee’s minded to decision, the
delegation to the Service
Manager for Development Management and Enforcement to be authorised to grant
permission be enacted, as per 1 a) and b) above.
Reasons for Decisions
•
The delivery of housing on an allocated site to meet the
District’s needs
•
The provision of land for a First School on an allocated
site to meet the District’s needs
•
The offer of appropriate financial contributions to off-set
the proposal’s impact in relation to education services, protected heathland and affordable housing
•
The siting, scale, and design of all buildings are
considered appropriate to the site and its surroundings
•
It is considered that the proposal would not give rise to
any significant adverse impacts in any respect, and that the proposal accords
with the Development Plan as a whole, and is acceptable in all material
respects
Supporting documents: