Issue - meetings

Full application to construct 12 dwelling houses with an access, parking and associated infrastructure.

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Judith Humphreys

Link to relevant background documents

To delegate the right for the Assistant Head of Department to approve the application, subject to reaching an agreement on the level of the financial contribution towards education and to complete a 106 Agreement to secure a financial contribution towards play areas and education and a condition to provide two affordable homes and the following conditions:

1.    Five years.

2.    In accordance with the documents/plans submitted with the application.

3.    Natural slate.

4.    Samples of materials and colours for the houses to be agreed with the LPA.

5.    Highways Conditions.

6.    Soft and hard landscaping.

7.    Biodiversity conditions

8.    Agree on details regarding Welsh names for the development together with advertising signage informing of and promoting the development within and outside the site.

9.    Removal of general development rights.

10.  Submit a Construction Method Statement including parking provision for the builders' vehicles, working hours, deliveries, etc.

11.  Submit outdoor lighting details to be agreed with the LPA before they are installed.

12.  Safeguard the open space for the future

13.  Provision of bin sites

14.  Contaminated land matters

15.  Drainage / Welsh Water conditions

Note: Inform the applicant of the need to submit a sustainable drainage strategy plan for approval by the Council's Water and Environment Unit.

Note: Inform the applicant of the response of Welsh Water and Natural Resources Wales.

Note: Various Highways notes

Full application to construct 12 dwelling houses with an access, parking and associated infrastructure

a)            The Planning Manager highlighted that the application was a full application to;

·         Provide 12 two-storey houses in the form of detached houses, semi-detached houses and terraced houses, including 8 three-bedroom houses and 4 two-bedroom houses. 

·         Creation of infrastructure to include estate roads and associated footpaths, fences/railings and stone walls.

·         Provision of parking spaces for each house, bin storage area and creation of individual gardens to the side and rear of the houses.

·         Provision of amenity spaces within the site along with an area to collect water.

·         The application was amended since its original submission following observations by the Transportation Unit and the Municipal Unit regarding access matters and the location of the bin collection location.

It was explained that the application site was currently empty but in the past it was a busy commercial site as a goods sales warehouse and previously it was a site with a mechanic garage and filling station. It was noted that the site, located within the Penygroes development boundary, was fairly flat and surrounded by residential housing.  

Members were reminded that a full application was approved recently in Penygroes to provide 24 residential units, with each of them being affordable houses. It was explained that this site had been included and designated specifically for a residential development and was not a windfall site as in this case. It is not believed that the consent and the associated numbers changed the situation in terms of the numbers of houses identified for Penygroes and it did not affect the threshold identified for the village. Policy TAI 15 of the LDP states that Councils will attempt to ensure an appropriate level of affordable houses in the Plan's area. In Penygroes, two or more housing units were the threshold, whilst noting that 20% of the units should be affordable. As the proposed development proposed 12 units, this corresponded with the threshold noted in Policy TAI 15 to make a contribution to affordable housing.

In the context of educational matters and in accordance with the requirements of the SPG, consideration should be given to the situation in the school that served the catchment area where the development was located. In response to the statutory consultation the Education Department's Information officer stated that Ysgol Gynradd Bro Lleu was over its capacity. As per usual and in accordance with the requirements of the relevant formula in the SPG, there was justification here to ask for a contribution of £50,480 to meet the lack of capacity in the primary school.

It was added, in accordance with ISA 5 of the LDP, that proposals for 10 or more dwellings, in areas where existing open space cannot meet the needs of the proposed housing development, would be expected to provide suitable provision of open spaces in accordance with the Field in Trust (FIT) benchmark standards.  Although the proposal included open spaces, they did not meet the need for spaces  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13