Agenda item

Application: 2019/0668/OUT

Location:Pasture Cottage, Main Street, Thorganby

Proposal: Outline application for a residential development and demolition of steel portal framed former haulage workshop building to include access (all other matters reserved)

The Senior Planning Officer presented the application which had been brought before Planning Committee as there had been more than 10 letters of representation received in support of the application contrary to Officers’ opinion, where they would otherwise have refused the application under delegated powers due to conflict with the development plan.

The Committee noted that the application was an outline application for a residential development and demolition of steel portal framed former haulage workshop building to include access (all other matters reserved).

The Officer Update Note set out details of a revised reason for refusal, which required further wording to ensure it was accurate and comprehensive.

The Committee asked questions in relation to the development limits of the site, previous development on it, its location and the NPPF’s guidance on previously developed land.

Stephen Fell, Parish Council representative from Thorganby Parish Council, was invited remotely into the meeting and spoke in support of the application.

Gemma Owston, agent, was invited remotely into the meeting and spoke in support of the application.

Members debated the application and the material considerations that could lead to granting permission for the brownfield site.

Some Members made the point that the site already included a large workshop and as such the proposed residential scheme on the site would not have a significant impact on the village community. The removal of the haulage business could benefit the local area, and the proposed residential development could be more in keeping with the character of the village, and an improvement on lawful use in terms of amenity. Some Committee Members felt that a condition limiting the number of dwellings on the site to five should be applied if permission was granted; Thorganby was a secondary village that could sustain some level of development as long as it was appropriate in scale and design.

Other Members did not agree that the Committee should go against the Officer’s recommendation to refuse and that a decision should be take on the scheme that was in accordance with the development plan. There were no material considerations that justified approval, and as such, the Council’s current development plan should be adhered to. If approved, the dwellings would be in the open countryside and outside development limits, with concerns also having been raised by the Council’s Conservation Officer and Landscape Architect.

It was proposed and seconded that the application be REFUSED; a vote was taken on the proposal and was LOST.

It was subsequently proposed and seconded that the application be APPROVED; a vote was taken on the proposal and CARRIED.

Members suggested that it be delegated to the Head of Planning, in consultation with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Committee, to draft and determine appropriate conditions for the scheme.

RESOLVED:

That the application be APPROVED and that drafting and determination of the conditions be delegated to the Head of Planning, in consultation with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Committee.