Issue - meetings

Full application for the Erection of 8. No. Affordable Dwellings (exception site) and Associated Development to include creation of vehicular access, estate road, landscaping and sustainable surface water drainage area.

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Gareth Williams

Link to relevant background documents

DECISION: To defer a decision and conduct a site visit.

Reason:  To assess the impact of the proposal on the amenities of the neighbouring residents.

Full application for the erection of eight affordable dwellings (exception site) and associated developments to include creation of a vehicular access, estate road, landscaping and a sustainable surface water drainage area. 

            Attention was drawn to the late observations form.

a)               The Planning Manager highlighted that the proposal includes the construction of three 2-bedroom bungalows, four 3-bedroom two-storey houses and one 4-bedroom two-storey houses all to be finished with a mix of render, stone and wood cladding on the walls and a natural slate roof. It was added that an existing natural 'clawdd' to the front of the site was to be relocated to the northern boundary of the site with new hedges to be planted on the remaining site boundaries.

It was reported that the site of the proposed development is presently open agricultural land with boundaries predominantly natural hedges with adjacent residential dwellings to the north, west and southerly direction with various elevations in terms of design, form and finishes. The entire site is outside the current development boundary of the village of Aberdaron and is therefore in open countryside. The western and southern boundary of the proposed site partly abut the current development boundary. The class 3 public road is situated adjacent to the western boundary and what would be the front of the site with access and a right of way into agricultural lands that runs along the land's northern boundary. The site is within the Llŷn AONB and the Llŷn and Ynys Enlli Landscape of Outstanding Historic Interest designations and within a 500m zone from a scheduled monument.

It was explained that the village of Aberdaron is defined as a rural/coastal village in the LDP with approximately 95 houses and a few facilities within the current development boundary. Based on the settlement size a development of this scale would mean a growth of 7.6% to the settlement, however, we must bear in mind that recent permission was granted for another exception site for 5 units in this settlement. 

With the site located outside the development boundary all units were expected to be for local affordable need. For Aberdaron this is defined as people who are in need of affordable housing and who have lived within the Village, or in the surrounding rural area for five years or more, either immediately before submitting an application or in the past. A 'rural area' has been defined in this case as a distance of 6km from the application site and the whole of the area of any Community Council divided by the 6km distance, excluding properties within the development boundary of any settlement other than the settlement within which the application is located.

Evidence was submitted in the form of a Housing and Affordable Housing Needs Statement which refers to a need highlighted on the Social Housing and Tai Teg Register in Aberdaron and the village of Rhiw, stating that Rhiw is located within 6km east of Aberdaron and is not included as a designated  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9