Agenda item

Application: 2017/0701/OUT

Location: Yew Tree House, Main Street, Kelfield, York, North Yorkshire

Proposal: Outline application for demolition of garage, farm buildings and glasshouse and erection of residential development (all matters reserved)

The Planning Development Manager presented the application which had been brought back to committee following consideration at the 10 January 2018 meeting, where Members had resolved:

“To DEFER the application in order to give the applicant the opportunity to work with Officers to submit a revised plan more acceptable to the site boundaries and development limits”.

The submission of a presence or absence survey of all accessible watercourses within 500m of the application site had also been required in order for the Local Planning Authority to assess the impact of the proposed development on European Protected Species (specifically Great Crested Newts).

The Committee noted that the application was an outline application for the demolition of garage, farm buildings and glasshouse and erection of residential development (all matters reserved).

Members acknowledged that since the application was previously brought before Committee in January 2018 an appeal (reference: APP/N2379/W/17/3170320) in respect of an outline application (reference: 2016/0597/OUT) (with all matters reserved) for the erection of a residential development following the demolition of an existing dwelling, garage, farm buildings and glasshouse at Yew Tree House, main Street, Kelfield had been dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate.

Members queried if any additional consultation responses had been received since the matter had last been considered by the Committee; Officers confirmed that additional comments had been received from the County Ecologist and the Conservation Officer, but that no further neighbour objections had been received.

Officers confirmed that should permission be granted for the application, more detailed reserved matters would need to come back to Committee for further approval.

Melissa Madge, agent, spoke in support of the application.

Members discussed the application further and were of the opinion that contrary to the Officer recommendation, outline permission should be granted for the scheme.

Members gave a number of reasons for granting permission; they felt that the visual appearance of the site and village would be improved, there would be social, economic and environmental benefits including maintaining a vibrant community in the village, a number of residents had expressed their support for the scheme, including the local ward Member for Kelfield, and that a similar scheme had recently been granted in Skipwith.

It was proposed and seconded that the application be refused.

An amendment to the refusal motion was proposed and seconded that the Committee were minded to approve the application, and to ask Officers to come back to Committee with suitably worded conditions to limit the number of properties on the site to the number proposed in the outline application.

A vote was taken on the amendment and it was carried.

A vote was then taken on the substantive motion.

RESOLVED:

The Committee were minded to APPROVE the application, and asked Officers to bring back to Committee suitably worded conditions to limit the number of properties on the site to the number proposed in the outline application.