Agenda item

Application to demolish 10 bungalows, existing shopping parade and residential accommodation above, estate office, MOT service garage and 27 garages plus garages/stores and construct 133 new dwellings, new shops plus associated works to landscape, parking and service access roads.

The Committee received the report of the Major Cases Manager, including the relevant planning history of the site and details of responses to the application.

 

The Chair invited Sue Gordon from Friends of the Meriden to speak in objection to the application.

 

Speaking on behalf of residents, Mrs Gordon expressed significant concern at the application, which was considered out of scale and overbearing.  Whilst the need for more housing was widely understood, these plans would remove over 70% of the green space in the central area.

 

The development would produce a major increase in parking and rat running problems on the estate.  Residents were concerned that the traffic surveys had not adequately recorded and predicted these impacts, exacerbating other concerns about the proposed shared surface area, which was considered hazardous.

 

The redevelopment would destroy the community feel of the area, uprooting people to re-house them in soulless tower blocks.

 

Residents were also concerned about the impact of the redevelopment on local amenities.  The Meriden Estate was not well served by public transport and local people relied on the shops on the estate.

 

The Chair then invited Mr Garreth Lewis from WCHT to speak in support of the application.

 

Mr Lewis reported that this application sought to re-establish a vibrant community in Meriden, using the assets of the area to make a positive contribution to the current housing shortage in Watford.  The 74 affordable homes proposed exceeded the Council’s declared target by a considerable margin.  The application also included an important specialist accommodation block.

 

Residents had been widely consulted by the Trust.  This had led to a number of changes to the application, including the introduction of some bungalows, greater variation in the roof lines, proposals to keep certain community groups together and assistance for existing retailers.

 

The result was a major scheme which met or exceeded Council requirements in all areas.

 

The Chair then invited the Major Cases Manager to provide an overview for the Committee.  He explained that the application would involve the demolition of all existing buildings within the application site and the erection of 11 new blocks.  This would provide 133 new dwellings, including a 50 bed extra care scheme and new shops.  Associated work would be undertaken to the landscape, parking and service access roads.

 

Following his introduction, the Major Cases Manager drew the Committee’s attention to the update sheet, which contained some additional consultation comments from Environmental Health.  In the light of these comments, two further conditions had been proposed.

 

The Chair thanked the speakers and invited Councillor Hastrick, Meriden Ward Councillor, to speak to the Committee.

 

Councillor Hastrick commented that she had previously been on the board of the WCHT, but was no longer the Council’s representative on this body.

 

She acknowledged the need for more affordable housing in Watford, but had grave concerns about the density and design of the proposed development. 

 

Residents loved the estate’s openness and green space.  The large blocks had been made less obtrusive by their angling and green verges and trees had obscured many of the buildings.  An ecology report from HCC concurred with residents’ concerns about the loss of this green infrastructure.

 

There were additional concerns about the obscuring of sight lines in parts of the estate as a result of the redevelopment, as well as issues with the shared surface junction, which would be dangerous.

 

Traffic issues persisted on the estate and would be exacerbated by the proposals.

 

The Chair thanked all the speakers for their contributions.  He then drew the Committee’s attention to a late written representation from the Friends of the Meriden.  The Interim Development Management Section Head expressed the view that this did not raise any new issues for consideration by the Committee.

 

In answer to a query from the Chair, the Major Cases Manager confirmed the validity of the traffic survey, which had used accepted best practice.  The surveys had been undertaken at various times during the day and at weekends, and the results had not been questioned by HCC.

 

The Chair asked for comments from the Committee.

 

Councillor Turmaine acknowledged the important and good work that had been undertaken by WCHT to provide more accommodation in the Borough.  However, he questioned the limited provision of bungalows in the application as well as the number of social housing units.  There were also issues about future shop provision and the siting of the care home.

 

The Major Cases Manager clarified that the Trust had not been required to replace the bungalows in its proposal, but had done so in response to residents’ concerns.  Social rented housing was increasingly difficult to provide following proposed changes to government rules on rent levels.  In the current proposal, the Trust had sought to produce the best mix of tenures and unit sizes.  67% of the accommodation would be affordable housing, which greatly exceeded the Council’s target of 35%.

 

He went on to confirm that the management of the public house (in response to the siting of the care home) and the question of affordable rents for the new shops were not material planning issues and were therefore outside the remit of this Committee.

 

Councillor Bell raised the question of the loss of green space.  Whilst there was a clear need for some modernisation of the estate and the development provided an opportunity for more housing provision, this was being achieved at the expense of a large part of the green space.  It was an overdevelopment of the site.

 

Responding to this issue, the Major Cases Manager reported that whilst a large amount of green space would be lost, a significant area would remain.  Adjacent to the redevelopment site, there was a sizeable recreation area, incorporating a sports zone, children’s play area and open grassland.  This recreation area was larger than the total size of the redevelopment site.

 

Councillor Sharpe reviewed the range of issues already raised, including the loss of green space, traffic and parking concerns.  Despite the strength of feeling on these issues, he advised that they did not provide grounds for the Committee to refuse planning permission.

 

Councillor Johnson sought clarification of the proximity of the flats to the shops.  It was confirmed that the distances conformed to minimum standards and there were therefore no issues about overlooking or loss of light. 

 

In a supplementary question, Councillor Johnson queried residents’ concerns about deliveries to the shops, both in terms of timings and the size of vehicles permitted.  The Major Cases Manager reported that this point had been taken up in condition 29 to the officer recommendation at the end of the report.  This required a detailed Delivery and Servicing Management Plan to be submitted to the Council at least four months prior to the occupation of any commercial units.

 

Councillor Watkin took up residents’ concerns about the planned shared surface area.  The Major Cases Manager advised that the Hertfordshire Design Guide included proposals for shared surfaces.  Condition 20 to the officer recommendation at the end of the report required a Stage 2 Road Safety Audit for the proposed highway improvements and access junctions to be submitted to the Council prior to commencement of the development.  It was possible that this might result in some changes to the current plans, subject to the views of HCC and the Highways Authority.

 

Following a question by the Chair, Councillor Bell moved a motion to refuse the application on the grounds that it was an overdevelopment of the site and too great a loss of open space.

 

On being put to the Committee, the motion was LOST.

 

The Chair then moved the officer recommendation.

 

RESOLVED –

 

(A)       That planning permission be granted, subject to the completion of a planning obligation under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) as set out below, and subject to the following conditions:

 

Section 106 Heads of Terms

           

i)          To secure the provision of fire hydrants as required by the County Council in accordance with Policy H10 of the Watford District Plan 2000.

 

ii)                  To secure a minimum of 89 dwellings as affordable housing comprising 9 social rented and 80 affordable rented units. The remaining 44 dwellings to be provided as social rented, affordable rented or private rented units.

 

Conditions

 

1.         The development to which this permission relates shall be begun within a period of 3 years commencing on the date of this permission.

 

2.         The development shall only be constructed in accordance with the following approved drawings, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority:

 

101_PL_011A, 002B, 003D, 004A, 005A, 006B, 007A, 008A, 009A, 010A, 011A, 012A, 013B, 014A, 015B, 016B, 017B, 018B, 019B, 020A, 021A, 022A, 025C, 026C, 027E, 028E, 029D, 030C, 031D, 032B, 033B, 034B, 035C, 036C, 037A, 038A, 039B, 040B.

 

3.         Construction of the development hereby permitted shall not take place before 8am or after 6pm Mondays to Fridays, or at any time on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays.

 

4.         No development shall commence until the scheme has been registered with the Considerate Constructors Scheme and a certificate of registration has been submitted to the Local Planning Authority. The construction shall be carried out in accordance with the requirements of this scheme.

 

5.         No development shall commence until a Development Phasing Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. This Plan shall include for each phase a site plan delineating the following works to be undertaken in that phase:

 

            i)       the dwellings to be constructed;

            ii)      the parking spaces to be constructed;

            iii)     the improvement works to be undertaken within the highway;

            iv)     the footpath improvement works to be undertaken.

 

            No dwelling shall be occupied in any given phase until all works within that phase and each preceding phase have been completed in full, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

 

6.         No development shall commence within any phase as approved in the Development Phasing Plan until an Environmental Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority for that phase. This Plan shall include details of contractors’ parking, arrangements for the delivery and storage of materials, any temporary access/egress points to adjoining highways, measures to mitigate noise and dust, and wheel washing facilities. The Plan as approved shall be implemented throughout the demolition/construction period for each phase.

 

7.         No development shall commence within any phase as approved in the Development Phasing Plan until a Site Waste Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority for that phase. This Plan shall include demolition and construction works within each phase. The Plan as approved shall be implemented throughout the demolition/construction period for each phase.

 

8.         No development shall commence within any phase until fencing of a style, height and in a position to be agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority shall have been erected to protect all trees which are to be retained. No materials, vehicles, fuel or any other items shall be stored or buildings erected or works carried out inside this fencing and no changes in ground level shall be made within the spread of any tree or shrubs (including hedges) without the prior written approval of the Local Planning Authority.

 

9.         No construction works shall commence until full details and samples of the materials to be used for the external surfaces of the buildings (including walls, roofs, windows, doors, balconies and solar panels) have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The development shall only be implemented in accordance with the approved materials.

 

10.       No construction works shall commence until details of a lighting scheme for the development have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.  The scheme shall be installed as approved prior to the first occupation of each phase of the development to which it relates.

 

11.       No removal of trees, scrub or hedges shall be carried out on the site between 1^st March and 31^st August in any year unless a suitably qualified ecologist has previously searched the trees, scrub or hedges and certified in writing to the Local Planning Authority that such works of removal may proceed.

 

12.      No development approved by this planning permission (or such other date or stage in development as may be agreed in writing with the Local Planning Authority), shall take place until a scheme that includes the following components to deal with the risks associated with contamination of the site shall each be submitted to and approved, in writing, by the local planning authority:

 

1) A preliminary risk assessment which has identified:

- all previous uses

- potential contaminants associated with those uses

- a conceptual model of the site indicating sources, pathways and receptors

- potentially unacceptable risks arising from contamination at the site.

 

2) A site investigation scheme, based on (1) to provide information for a detailed assessment of the risk to all receptors that may be affected, including those off site.

 

3) The results of the site investigation and detailed risk assessment referred to in (2) and, based on these, an options appraisal and remediation strategy giving full details of the remediation measures required and how they are to be undertaken.

 

4) A verification plan providing details of the data that will be collected in order to demonstrate that the works set out in the remediation strategy in (3) are complete and identifying any requirements for longer-term monitoring of pollutant linkages, maintenance and arrangements for contingency action.

 

Any changes to these components require the express written consent of the Local Planning Authority. The scheme shall be implemented as approved.

 

13.      No occupation of any part of the permitted development shall take place until a verification report demonstrating completion of works set out in the approved remediation strategy and the effectiveness of the remediation shall be submitted to and approved, in writing, by the local planning authority. The report shall include results of sampling and monitoring carried out in accordance with the approved verification plan to demonstrate that the site remediation criteria have been met. It shall also include any plan (a "long-term monitoring and maintenance plan") for longer-term monitoring of pollutant linkages, maintenance and arrangements for contingency action, as identified in the verification plan. The long-term monitoring and maintenance plan shall be implemented as approved.

 

14.      No development should take place until a long-term monitoring and maintenance plan in respect of contamination including a timetable of monitoring and submission of reports to the Local Planning Authority, shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Reports as specified in the approved plan, including details of any necessary contingency action arising from the monitoring, shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Any necessary contingency measures shall be carried out in accordance with the details in the approved reports. On completion of the monitoring specified in the plan a final report demonstrating that all long-term remediation works have been carried out and confirming that remedial targets have been achieved shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

 

15.      If, during development, contamination not previously identified is found to be present at the site then no further development (unless otherwise agreed in writing with the local planning authority) shall be carried out until the developer has submitted a remediation strategy to the local planning authority detailing how this unsuspected contamination shall be dealt with and obtained written approval from the local planning authority. The remediation strategy shall be implemented as approved.

 

16.      No infiltration of surface water drainage into the ground at this site is permitted other than with the express written consent of the local planning authority, which may be given for those parts of the site where it has been demonstrated that there is no resultant unacceptable risk to controlled waters. The development shall be carried out in accordance with the approval details.

 

17.      Piling or any other foundation designs using penetrative methods shall not be permitted other than with the express written consent of the Local Planning Authority, which may be given for those parts of the site where it has been demonstrated that there is no resultant unacceptable risk to groundwater. The development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details.

 

18.      No development shall commence until a drainage strategy, detailing any on and/or off site drainage works, has been submitted to and approved by, the Local Planning Authority. The proposed foul water discharge rates to every connection point must be included in the drainage strategy. If initial investigations conclude that the existing sewer network is unlikely to be able to support the demand anticipated from this development, an Impact Study must be undertaken to inform the drainage strategy. No discharge of foul or surface water from the site shall be accepted into the public system until all works referred to in the approved drainage strategy have been completed in full.

 

19.      No impact piling shall take place within the site until a piling method statement (detailing the depth and type of piling to be undertaken and the methodology by which such piling will be carried out, including measures to prevent and minimise the potential for damage to subsurface sewerage infrastructure, and the programme for the works) has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.  Any piling must be undertaken in accordance with the terms of the approved piling method statement.

 

20.      No development shall commence until a Stage 2 Road Safety Audit for the proposed highway improvements and access junctions has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The development shall only be constructed in accordance with the approved works.

 

21.      No demolition or construction works shall not commence until a Construction Traffic Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Thereafter the construction of the development shall only be carried out in accordance with the approved Plan. The Construction Traffic Management Plan shall include details of:

a) Construction vehicle numbers, type, routing;

b) Traffic management requirements;

c) Construction and storage compounds (including areas designated for car parking);

d) Siting and details of wheel washing facilities;

e) Cleaning of site entrances, site tracks and the adjacent public highway;

f) Timing of construction activities to avoid school pick up/drop off times;

g) Provision of sufficient on-site parking prior to commencement of construction activities;

h) Post construction restoration/reinstatement of the working areas and temporary access to the public highway.

 

22.      The development permitted by this planning permission shall only be carried out in accordance with the approved Flood Risk Assessment carried out by Conisbee Engineers dated 24 August 2015 (Revision 1.2, reference 150340/TG), drawing no.C103 and the response letter to the LLFA received on the 10 September 2015 and the following mitigation measures detailed within the FRA:

 

i)       Limiting the surface water run-off generated by the 1 in 100 year + 30% for climate change critical storm so that it will not exceed the run-off from the undeveloped site and not increase the risk of flooding off-site.

 

ii)      Restricting the surface water run-off rates to each discharge point into the existing sewer network in accordance with Table 6.1 within the FRA.

 

iii)     Implement a range of SuDS measures in accordance with the FRA including permeable paving, swales, rain gardens and tanks.

 

The mitigation measures shall be fully implemented prior to occupation and subsequently in accordance with the timing / phasing arrangements embodied within the scheme, or within any other period as may subsequently be agreed, in writing, by the Local Planning Authority.

 

23.      No individual dwelling in any given block of houses or flats, as identified on the approved drawings, shall be occupied until a detailed soft landscaping scheme for all the land within and adjoining the respective part of the site, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. This shall include the retention of existing trees and hedging where possible and measures to enhance the ecological biodiversity of the site. The approved landscaping scheme shall be carried out not later than the first available planting and seeding season after completion of the respective block forming part of the development. Any trees or plants whether new or existing which within a period of five years die, are removed or become seriously damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of similar size and species, or in accordance with details approved by the Local Planning Authority.

 

24.      No individual dwelling in any given block of houses or flats, as identified on the approved drawings, shall be occupied until a detailed hard landscaping scheme for all the land within and adjoining the respective part of the site, including details of all site boundary treatments and internal plot boundaries, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority, and the works have been carried out in accordance with the approved details.

 

25.       No individual dwelling in any given block of houses or flats, as identified on the approved drawings, shall be occupied until the respective refuse and recycling facilities and cycle storage facilities to serve the dwellings, as shown on the approved drawings, have been constructed. These facilities shall be retained as approved at all times.

 

26.       No individual dwelling in any given block of houses or flats, as identified on the approved drawings, shall be occupied until the respective vehicle parking accommodation, as shown on the approved Development Phasing Plan has been provided and made available for use.  This parking accommodation shall be permanently retained and shall not be used for any other purpose than the parking of vehicles of occupants of the development or visitors to the site.

 

27.      Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 3 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, no development permitted under Schedule 2, Part 1, Classes A, B, C, D, E, F of the Order shall be carried out to the houses hereby approved without the prior written permission of the Local Planning Authority.

 

28.      At least four months prior to the first occupation of the development, details of the proposed Travel Plan for the residential elements of the development shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

 

29.      At least four months prior to the occupation of any commercial unit, details of a Delivery and Servicing Management Plan for the development shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. This shall include details of the size of delivery vehicles, the locations for parking delivery vehicles and the times during which deliveries shall take place.

 

30.      No access shall be brought into use until it has been laid out and constructed in accordance with details to be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

 

31.      No plant or equipment associated with the commercial uses in Blocks E1, E2 and E3 or the communal kitchen in Block D shall be sited on the external elevations of the buildings unless details of the plant or equipment has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The details shall include size, appearance, siting and technical specifications relating to noise and odour control as appropriate.

 

32.      The commercial units within the development shall only be used for the following uses within the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 (as amended), unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority:

a)         The unit labelled as ‘hairdresser’ in Block D shall only be used for purposes within Class A1 (Shops).

b)         The unit labelled as ‘café’ in Block E1 shall only be used as a café within Class A3 (Restaurants and cafes) or for purposes within Class A1 (Shops).

c)         Units 1-8 in Block E2 shall only be used for purposes within Class A1 (Shops) with the exception of one unit which may be used as a launderette (Sui generis), one unit which may be used for purposes within Class A2 (Financial and professional offices) and two units which may be used for purposes within Class A5 (Hot food takeaways).

d)        Unit 9 in Block E3 shall only be used for purposes within Class A1 (Shops).

 

33.      No commercial unit within Blocks E1, E2 and E3 shall be open to the public before 0700 hours or after 2200 hours on any day.

 

34.       No construction works shall commence to Block D, Block E2 or Block F1 until an acoustic report, assessing any noise impacts on the proposed dwellings from the adjacent existing electricity sub-stations and proposing any necessary mitigation measures, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. No dwelling in these blocks shall be occupied until any respective mitigation measures have been installed in full. These measures shall be retained at all times.

 

35.       No construction works shall commence on Block D until measures to prevent overheating of the dwellings in this block facing south have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. No dwelling shall be occupied until the approved mitigation measures have been implemented in full. These measures shall be retained at all times.

 

Informatives:

 

1.         This planning permission is accompanied by a unilateral undertaking under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to secure the provision of a minimum of 89 affordable housing units and the necessary fire hydrants to serve the development.

 

2.         In dealing with this application, Watford Borough Council has considered the proposal in a positive and proactive manner having regard to the policies of the development plan as well as paragraphs 186 and 187 of the National Planning Policy Framework and other material considerations, and in accordance with the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2010, as amended. The Council also gave pre-application advice on the proposal prior to the submission of the application and undertook discussions with the applicant’s agent during the application process.

 

3.         Before commencing the development the applicant shall contact Hertfordshire County Council Highways (0300 123 4047) to obtain i) their ermission/requirements regarding access for vehicles involved in the demolition of the existing building; ii) a condition survey of any adjacent highways which may be affected by construction vehicles together with an agreement with the highway authority that the developer will bear all costs in reinstating any damage to the highway.

 

4.         A Groundwater Risk Management Permit from Thames Water will be required for discharging groundwater into a public sewer. Any discharge made without a permit is deemed illegal and may result in prosecution under the provisions of the Water Industry Act 1991. We would expect the developer to demonstrate what measures he will undertake to minimise groundwater discharges into the public sewer. 

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Drawing numbers

101_PL_011A, 002B, 003D, 004A, 005A, 006B, 007A, 008A, 009A, 010A, 011A, 012A, 013B, 014A, 015B, 016B, 017B, 018B, 019B, 020A, 021A, 022A, 025C, 026C, 027E, 028E, 029D, 030C, 031D, 032B, 033B, 034B, 035C, 036C, 037A, 038A, 039B, 040B.

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(B)       In the event that an acceptable planning obligation under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 has not been completed by 30^th October 2015 in respect of the Heads of Terms set out above, the Development Management Section Head be authorised to refuse planning permission for the application for the following reasons:

 

1.         The proposal fails to make provision for affordable housing on-site and as such is contrary to Policy HS3 of the Watford Local Plan Core Strategy 2006-31.

 

2.         The proposal fails to make provision for fire hydrants to serve the development and as such is contrary to Policy INF1 of the Watford Local Plan Core Strategy 2006-31 and saved Policy H10 of the Watford District Plan 2000.