Planning application for the demolition of the existing building and the erection of 32 dwellings together with a means of access from Eastbury Road, provision of associated parking, amenity space and landscaping

The committee received the report of the Head of Development Management, including the relevant planning history of the site and details of the responses to the application. 

The Principal Planning Officer explained that the application proposed the demolition of the existing building and erection of 32 dwellings together with a means of access from Eastbury Road, provision of associated parking, amenity space and landscaping.

The Chair invited Rodney Salter, a local resident, to speak against the application.  Mr Salter raised concerns about the scale of the proposed development.  Although it had been reduced in height, the development remained three storeys in an area of predominantly two storey houses and would harm neighbouring properties.

Mr Salter argued that the local transport options were not accurately represented in the officer’s report and future residents would rely more heavily on car usage.  The lack of parking arrangements in the scheme would lead to overspill parking in surrounding streets.

The Chair invited Steven Brown, Woolf Bond Planning, to speak for the application.   Mr Brown asserted that the principle of development on this site had been justified and the amendments to the previous application had responded to the concerns of the committee.  The scheme was fully policy compliant and would not impact on the amenity of adjacent properties.  No objections had been raised by the statutory consultees.

Mr Brown advised that an open book viability appraisal had been undertaken and the affordable housing offer complied with Policy HS3 of the Watford Local Plan Core Strategy.  In addition, a review mechanism would allow a financial payment to be made towards affordable housing provision where the viability of the development could be shown to have improved.

The Chair invited comments from the committee.

Committee members considered that the grounds for refusal of the previous scheme had been overcome.  It was regretted that the development could no longer provide a policy compliant level of affordable housing.

The Chair moved the officer’s recommendation subject to the successful completion of a section 106 agreement.

RESOLVED –

That, pursuant to a planning obligation under s.106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 having been completed to secure the following Heads of Terms, planning permission be granted subject to the conditions listed below:

Section 106 Heads of Terms

i)          To secure 2 No x 3 bed duplex units of the development to be Affordable Housing units comprising 1 no. social rented unit and 1 no. affordable rented unit.

ii)         To secure a review mechanism of the viability of the development to be undertaken towards the end of the project when actual build costs and sales values of the flats are known. This shall allow financial payment to be made towards affordable housing provision where the viability of the development can be shown to have improved to provide a financial surplus;

iii)        To secure a financial payment to Hertfordshire County Council of £2,000 for the long term monitoring of the proposed Travel Plan for the site;

iv)        To secure the provision of fire hydrants to serve the site as required by Hertfordshire County Council.

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 hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved drawings:-

3.         Development shall not 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 in consultation with the sewerage undertaker. No discharge of foul or surface water from the site shall be accepted into the public system until the drainage works referred to in the strategy have been completed.

4.         No external facing materials shall be installed on any building of the development until full details and samples of all the materials to be used for the external surfaces of the buildings have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

5.         No dwelling shall be occupied until a detailed Travel Plan Statement for the has been submitted to and approved by the Local Planning The Travel Plan Statement for the residential development shall consist of a written agreement with the County Council setting out a scheme to encourage, regulate and promote green travel measures for residents, in accordance with the provisions of the County Council’s ‘Travel Plan Guidance for Business and Residential Development’.  The approved Travel Plan Statement shall be implemented at all times.

6.         No part of the development shall be occupied until a detailed hard landscaping scheme for the site, including details of the roof gardens, hard standing, site boundary treatments, play area and external lighting 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.

7.         No part of the development shall be occupied until a detailed soft landscaping scheme for the site, including details of all trees to be lost and retained, all new replacement trees, details of the roof gardens and appropriate irrigation systems, and a landscape management and maintenance plan, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The detailed scheme shall be based upon the Landscape Proposals of the approved drawings. The approved soft landscaping scheme shall be carried out not later than the first available planting and seeding season after completion of 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.

8.         No piling shall take place 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 in consultation with Thames Water.  Any piling must be undertaken in accordance with the terms of the approved piling method statement.

9.         The development permitted by this planning permission shall be carried out in accordance with the approved SUDS Strategy carried out by EAS job number 1519 draft2 dated July 2018 and the following mitigation measures;

1.      Limiting the surface water run-off to a maximum of 5 l/s with discharge into the Thames Water sewer.

2.      2. Providing attenuation to ensure no increase in surface water run-off volumes for all rainfall events up to and including the 1 in 100 year + climate change event. 3. Undertake a drainage strategy to include the use oversized pipes, permeable paving, and a geo-cellular attenuation system.

            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.

10.       The measures of the Arboricultural Method Statement of the Arboricultural Report February 2018 prepared by David Clarke, including tree protection, ‘no-dig’ construction and ground protection shall be applied. No materials, vehicles, fuel or any other ancillary items shall be stored or buildings erected inside the protection fencing; no changes in ground level may be made within the spread of any tree or shrubs (including hedges) without the previous written consent of the Local Planning Authority.

11.       No part of the development shall be occupied until the modified proposed access and egress arrangements from Eastbury Road, as shown in principle on the approved drawings has been completed in full.

12.       No dwelling within the development shall be occupied until the bin and bicycle storage has been provided for the use of residents, in accordance with the approved drawings. These facilities shall be retained at all times for the use of the residential occupiers of the dwellings.

13.       No dwelling shall be occupied until details of a communal terrestrial television aerial(s) and satellite dish(es) have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

14.       No dwelling shall be occupied until the details of car parking allocation have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

15.       For the avoidance of doubt, no communications development permitted by Class B or Class C of Part 16 of Schedule 2 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 shall be undertaken on the building.

Informatives

IN912 Hours of Construction

IN913 Community Infrastructure Levy Liability

IN914 Section 106 Undertaking

IN909 Street naming and Numbering

IN907 Consideration of proposal in a positive and proactive manner

IN915 Highway Works – HCC agreement required