Derry City and Strabane District Council Planning Committee Report COMMITTEE DATE: 23 rd March 2016 APPLICATION No: APPLICATION TYPE: PROPOSAL: LOCATION: APPLICANT: LA11/2015/0395/F Residential Development Erection of 6 two bedroom apartments and 6 two bedroom dwellings with access arrangements, parking, landscaping and associated works Lands at 162-166 Foxhill Derry Clanmill Developments Ltd ADVERTISEMENT: 15.02.2016 STATUTORY EXPIRY: 07.03.2016 RECOMMENDATION: REFUSE REASON FOR PRESENTATION TO COMMITTEE: Application for 5 or more housing units All planning application forms, drawings, consultations, letters, objections etc. relating to this planning application are available to view on www.planningni.gov.uk 1. Description of Proposed Development The proposal is for the erection of 6 two bedroom apartments and 6 two bedroom dwellings with access arrangements, parking, landscaping and associated works. The layout of the development will be in the form of a cul-de-sac with an access road off the existing Foxhill road network. The proposed dwellings and apartment block are orientated to front onto the Victoria Gate development to the north and back onto the Foxhill Development, within which the site is located. The proposal includes the erection of a retaining wall structure along the southern boundary with Foxhill and a further retailing wall structure to the northern boundary, which runs along the rear gardens of the existing properties in Victoria Gate.
2. Site and Surrounding Area The application site is located on an area of green space in the North West corner of the existing Foxhill development. Approximately one third of the application site has been conditioned as open space as part of the original 2002 approval for the Foxhill development. The site sits on a lower level below the existing road on Foxhill to the south and at a significantly higher level that the properties in the Victoria Gate development to the north. The levels on the site fall steeply in a northerly direction, from 66m at Foxhill down to 51m at Victoria Gate. The existing Foxhill development, within which the proposal is located, consists of detached, semidetached and terraced dwellings constructed in a mix of materials including red brick, painted render and tiled roofs. The site is currently bounded to the south by a 3m high retaining wall topped with a concrete post and closed boarded timber fence.
Appendix 1 Site Location Plan Proposed Block Plan
Appendix 1 Proposed Floor Plans Proposed Elevations
Proposed Sections 3. Site Constraints The application site has no relevant site constraints 4. Neighbour Notification Report Neighbour Address Date Neighbour Notified 48 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 49 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 50 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 51 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 52 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 53 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 54 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16
89 Foxhill,Tamnymore,Londonderry,Londonderry,BT47 2TN 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 8 Victoria Park,Gobnascale, Londonderry,BT47 2AD 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 94 Victoria Gate,Tamnymore, Londonderry,BT47 2TQ 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 95 Victoria Gate,Tamnymore, Londonderry,BT47 2TQ 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 96 Victoria Gate,Tamnymore,Londonderry,BT47 2TQ 8/14/15 & 2/18/16 5. Relevant Site History A/2002/0543/F Residential development comprising detached dwellings, semi-detached dwellings, townhouses and apartments. Between Woodside Road and Victoria Road, Londonderry Granted 05.02.2004 A/2006/0747/F Erection of 6 detached dwellings (change of house types) 92-97 Victoria Gate, Victoria Road, Londonderry Granted 02.19.2007 A/2006/0802/F Residential development to include 14 no. apartments & 4 no. semi-detached dwellings Sites 162-166 & sites 157-161 Foxhill, Woodside Road, Londonderry Granted 10.10.2008 6. Policy Framework Derry Area Plan 2011 Policy BE 1 Urban Design requires development proposals to make a positive contribution to townscape and be sensitive to the character of the area surrounding the site in terms of design, scale and use of materials. PPS 3: Access, Movement and Parking Policy AMP 2 Access to Public Roads will grant planning permission for a development proposal involving direct access, or the intensification of the use of an existing access, onto a public road where a) such access will not prejudice road safety or significantly inconvenience the flow of traffic; and b) the proposal does not conflict with Policy AMP 3 Access to Protected Routes.
Policy AMP 7 Car Parking and Servicing Arrangements requires development proposals to provide adequate provision for car parking and appropriate servicing arrangements. The precise amount of car parking will be determined according to the specific characteristics of the development and its location having regard to the published standards or any reduction provided for in an area of parking restraint designated in a development plan. Proposals should not prejudice road safety or significantly inconvenience the flow of traffic. Beyond areas of parking restraint identified in a development plan, a reduced level of car parking provision may be acceptable in the circumstances outlined in this policy. Proposals involving car parking in excess of the published standards or which exceed a reduction provided for in a development plan will only be permitted in exceptional circumstances. PPS 7: Quality Residential Environments Policy QD 1 - Quality in New Residential Development states planning permission will only be granted for new residential development where it is demonstrated that the proposal will create a quality and sustainable residential environment. The design and layout of residential development should be based on an overall design concept that draws upon the positive aspects of the character and appearance of the surrounding area. In established residential areas proposals for housing development will not be permitted where they would result in unacceptable damage to the local character, environmental quality or residential amenity of these areas. All proposals for residential development will also be expected to conform with all of criteria (a - i) set out in this policy. PPS 7 Addendum: Safeguarding the Character of Established Residential Areas Policy LC 1 - Protecting Local Character, Environmental Quality and Residential Amenity states that in established residential areas planning permission will only be granted for the redevelopment of existing buildings, or the infilling of vacant sites (including extended garden areas) to accommodate new housing where all the criteria set out in Policy QD 1 of PPS 7, and all the following additional criteria are met: (a) the proposed density is not significantly higher than that found in the established residential area; (b)the pattern of development is in keeping with the overall character and environmental quality of the established residential area; and (c) all dwelling units and apartments are built to a size not less than those set out in Annex A. PPS 8: Open Space, Sport and Outdoor Recreation provides policy policies for the protection of open space, the provision of new areas of open space in association with residential development and the use of land for sport and outdoor recreation. Policy OS1 Protection of Open Space state
that permission will not be granted for development that would result in the loss of existing open space or land zoned for the provision of open space. The presumption against the loss of existing open space will apply irrespective of its physical condition and appearance. PPS 12: Housing in Settlements provides policy guidance which applies to all residential development proposals within cities, towns, villages and small settlements in Northern Ireland. Creating Places / Living Places provides guidance to aid designers in creating quality residential developments. PPS 15: Planning and Flood Risk provides policy guidance to minimise and manage flood risk to people, property and the environment. Policy FLD 3 - Development and Surface Water (Pluvial) Flood Risk Outside Flood Plains requires that a Drainage Assessment will be required for all development proposals that exceed any of the following thresholds; A residential development comprising of 10 or more dwelling units; A development site in excess of 1 hectare; A change of use involving new buildings and / or hard surfacing exceeding 1000 square metres in area. 7. Consultee Responses NI Water have no objections to the development subject to standard conditions Transport NI (TNI) requested further information in order to make a full assessment of the application: - Given the density and number of dwellings being considered under this proposal, it will be necessary that the site is offered for adoption and a Private Streets Determination drawing prepared. The retaining structure designed to retain the proposed carriageway and parking bays is unacceptable to TransportNI and as such should be designed out of the proposal. Amended plans were submitted by the agent on 3 rd and 11 th February to address these concerns. In a further response received from TNI the submitted plans were considered to be unacceptable in detail and further information was again requested. A further response from TNI date 8 March stated that until such time as the amendments are implemented and satisfactory drawings are submitted and in the event that Council Planning are considering a recommendation to refuse, TNI would suggest that the following refusal reason is also considered for inclusion. The proposed development is contrary to Policy QD1 of the Planning Policy Statement7, Quality Residential Environments and supplementary Creating Places Guidelines in that it has not been demonstrated that the development meets the requirements of Policy QD1 (a,e,f) and therefore, TNI cannot recommend the layout is suitable for a Determination under the Private Streets Order.
The list of amendments required is detailed in the TNI consultation response dated 19 February 2016. The Loughs Agency have no objections to the development subject to standard conditions Derry City and Strabane District Council s Environmental Health Department have no objections to the development subject to an informative to ensure that adequate steps are taken during demolition and construction to control noise and dust. 8. Representations Consideration There have been 30 objections received from 20 residential properties within Foxhill (no s 7,9, 12, 14, 16, 19, 28, 47, 51, 52, 54, 55, 57, 59, 77b, 81, 82, 86 and 88) and one from Victoria Gate(no. 75) The nature of the objections are: Contrary to Policy QD1 of PPS7 in that the development is not in keeping with the character of the housing within Foxhill (3/4 bedroom semi-detached dwelling); The size of the apartments will cause overshadowing to surrounding properties, causing issues with lighting and affecting privacy; The proposed development does not provide adequate provision of amenities within Foxhill, especially children s play spaces; o Increase in noise levels within the estate; o The proposed density of the dwellings within the development is significantly higher than that of the rest of Foxhill; Increase in traffic in an already busy estate; Inappropriate provision of parking provided for the amount of dwellings proposed causing cars to park along the street causing congestion and a safety hazard for other road users and pedestrians. Does not want social housing in the area Each of these issues will be considered in the planning assessment in paragraph 9 below. 9. Planning Assessment and Other Material Considerations
The application site is a plot of land located within an existing residential area and within the development limits of Derry City as designated in Map 2 of the Derry Area Plan 2011. The proposal is to provide a housing development comprising 6 two bedroom apartments and 6 two bedroom dwellings with access road, parking and landscaping. The site has had previous planning approvals for housing development. The main planning considerations that need to be taken into account in assessing this proposal are therefore the planning history of the site, the issues raised in the objection letters, PPS 1, PPS 7, PPS 7 Addendum, PPS8, PPS 12, Creating Places and Living Places in terms of design, layout, character, appearance and residential amenity, and PPS 3 in terms of access, parking and servicing. Planning History This site has planning approval for 5 dwellings under A/2002/0543/F - this approval was for the entire Foxhill development - which was granted on 5 th February 2004 (see layout below).
The site also has approval for 14 apartments under A/2006/0802/F which was granted on 10 th October 2008 (see layout below).
Policy QD 1 Criteria (a) Whilst the design of the scheme is generally in keeping with the context of the surrounding residential area in terms of the scale and design of the proposed dwellings, the orientation of the units backing onto the Foxhill development and fronting onto the rear of properties in Victoria Gate below, is out of character with the existing development in the surrounding area. Further to this impact on the character and form of development, there will also be a loss of open space as a result of the proposal. Approximately one third of the application site has previously been conditioned as open space for the entire Foxhill development. The proposal currently under consideration encroaches into this open space -In the eastern section of the site, 2 of the proposed housing units are fully located within the open space and to the northern section of the site a portion of the road and all of the proposed parking spaces are located within the protected open space. In terms of the proposed amenity space provision for the development, the acceptable requirement for private amenity space for the proposed apartment block is between 10-30 square metres per unit. Whilst there is a provision of approximately 70 square metres of amenity space within the proposal it is annotated to show it as ornamental shrub planting. If planted out as annotated, I would consider that this would not to be a useable area for residents rather an area that is designed to soften the hard landscaping that currently surrounds the proposed apartment block. In terms of the private amenity space allocations for the proposed dwellings, the standards are set at 70 square metres per dwelling. The
provision currently indicated on the proposal ranges between 40-45 square metres per dwelling which is well below the minimum standard. It is my considered opinion that taking account of the loss of open space along with the under provision of private amenity space, the proposal falls to meet the requirements of this criteria. (b) There are no features of archaeological or built heritage in the immediate area and no significant landscape features worthy of protection. (c) There is no requirement for public open space for a development of this size. However as discussed above the proposal has a detrimental impact on an area of existing open space that was designated and conditioned under the 2002 planning application for the Foxhill development. This area of open space was considered and retained within the subsequent approval for 14 apartments on the site under application A/2006/0802/F. However the application currently under consideration has seriously eroded the open space provision by proposing 2 housing units and large areas of tarmac within the open space. Coupled with the erosion of the open space provision the usability of the remaining open space is questionable, the area to the northern section of the site is bounded by a retaining wall which restricts access and the topography is such that, even if accessible, it would not create a safe or convenient area of open space for residents of Foxhill. The proposal includes an area of grass to the eastern section of the site and whilst this could be considered as an area that would reduce the need for residents to travel to open spaces elsewhere, the topography of the site is such that it could not be considered as usable rising by 7 metres from the road to the rear retaining wall. Whilst it is considered that the proposed open spaces will aid with softening the visual impact of the development and large areas of hard surfaces it is my considered opinion that there is a serious erosion of the existing open space provision as part the proposal and as a result it fails to meet the requirements of this criteria. (d) Local neighbourhood facilities are not required due to the small scale of the scheme. (e) The proposal is for a small scale development within a well-established residential area and adjacent to a main traffic route. A movement pattern has been established by the surrounding residential areas which are predominately car based. The development will sit within an existing network, therefore there is no opportunity to enhance its movement pattern given its small scale and link to an established road network.
(f) The parking standards as detailed in the DOE document Parking Standards set out the requirements for parking provision. The number of spaces per dwelling is set at 2 spaces for a 2 bedroom terrace house and 1.5 for a 2 bedroom apartment, this would require that the proposed development provide a total of 21 spaces. The current total provision for the development is 24 spaces, with 1 in-curtilage space and 1 integral garage space per dwelling and the remainder in a shared parking area to the northern boundary. Whilst Transport NI consider the level of parking provision proposed to be acceptable they require additional information relating the design and layout of the proposed access road and parking bays in order to bring them to adoptable standards. (g) The development comprises of a terrace of 6 number two and a half storey dwellings and a block of 6 number apartment which are proposed over 3 floors. The terraced houses are of similar design and scale to the existing dwelling within the Foxhill development with integral garages on the ground level and the living space on the upper two levels. However there are details proposed such as zinc clad projecting windows, black PVC framed ladder windows, black door frames and black rainwater goods that are of a more modern design than the existing development, however the red brick and rendered finishes with tiled roofs allows for adequate integration. Whilst there are currently no other apartment blocks located within the Foxhill development the design of the proposed block is in keeping with the proposed terraced dwellings in terms of form and the use of the same materials will aid with integration. Overall, the development is sensitive to the character of the surrounding urban residential area in terms of design, scale and materials and will contribute to the local townscape (h) The proposed dwellings are two and a half storey with living spaces on the first floor level which is in keeping with the existing dwellings in the Foxhill development, however the orientation of the dwellings backing onto Foxhill, by which they are accessed, and fronting onto the rear of the development at Victoria gate is considered to be in conflict with the adjacent land uses by way of the reorientation of the dwelling units. Whilst it is acknowledged that there is a separation distance of approximately 30m between the proposed dwellings and the rear of the properties at Victoria gate, in line with the standards set out in Creating Places, the location of the access road and parking spaces approximately 20m to the rear of the
properties in Victoria gate has the potential to cause disturbance by way of noise and lights from vehicles accessing the site and utilising the proposed parking spaces. The proposal is unlikely to result in overshadowing or loss of light given the separation distances. (i) The layout proposes views facing onto the cul-de-sac which ensures good supervision throughout the site. Policy LC 1 Given the context of the surrounding area and the planning history of the site, I do not consider that the density of the development would be significantly higher than that found in this established residential area, however the pattern of development would not be in keeping given its front to back orientation. All of the properties meet the space standards set out in Annex A of PPS 7 Addendum. The proposal is for the re-development of a vacant site to accommodate new housing in an established residential area and must therefore comply with all of the criteria set out in Policy QD1 of PPS7 before the additional criteria of LC 1 are considered. Given that the proposal fails to meet criterion (a) and (c) above the proposal must also fail this policy test. PPS 3 The development will be accessed via an existing access off the existing road network within the Foxhill development. Whilst the applicant has made amendments to the access road and parking arrangements to comply with the requirements of TNI, to date insufficient information has been provided to allow TNI to fully consider the proposal and therefore I am unable to fully determine if the proposal is in compliance with Policy AMP2 of PPS3. PPS 8 Policy OS1 states that development will be permitted that would result in the loss of existing open space or land zoned for the provision of open space. The presumption against the loss of existing open space will apply irrespective of its physical condition and appearance. As detailed above in QD1 consideration there is a significant erosion of the existing open space provision for the Foxhill development as a result of this proposal. Further to this I fail to see how the redevelopment will bring substantial community benefits that decisively outweigh the loss of the open space, therefore an exception is not considered in this case. PPS 15
The proposal is for a total of 12 dwelling units and as a result any application submitted is required to be accompanied by a Drainage assessment in line with policy FLD3. The application does not include a drainage assessment therefore it is considered that there is insufficient information to determine that adequate measures will be put in place so as to effectively mitigate the flood risk to the proposed development and from the development elsewhere. 10. Conclusion and Recommendation Having considered all material considerations, including the development plan, relevant planning policies, planning history of the site, consultations, objections etc. I would recommend that the Planning Committee gives consideration to my professional report and recommendation to refuse planning permission for the proposed housing development. 11. Refusal Reasons 1. The proposal is contrary to the SPPS, Policy QD1 of Planning Policy Statement 7 (PPS7) Quality Residential environments and supplementary Creating Places Guidelines in that it has not been demonstrated that the development meets the requirements of Policy QD1 (a and c) as the layout of the proposal does not respect the surrounding context and there are inadequate areas of open space and private amenity space provided for the dwelling units. 2. The proposal is contrary to Policy OS1 of Planning Policy Statement 8 (PPS8) Open Space, Sport and Outdoor Recreation in that the development would result in the loss of existing open space. 3. The proposal is contrary to AMP 2 of Planning Policy Statement 3 (PPS3) Access Movement and Parking in that insufficient information has been submitted to determine whether the intensification of the access would prejudice road safety or significantly inconvenience the flow of traffic. 4. The proposal is contrary to Policy FLD 3 of Planning Policy Statement 15 (PPS 15) Planning and Flood Risk in that insufficient information has been submitted to determine that adequate measures will be put in place so as to effectively mitigate the flood risk to the proposed development and the development elsewhere.