Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chair for 2019 - 2020

Resolved: To re-elect Councillor Elwyn Edwards as Chair of this Committee for 2019/20.

To elect a Vice Chair for 2019 - 2020

Resolved: To elect Councillor Eric Merfyn Jones as Vice-chair of this Committee for 2019/20.

To accept any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillor Menna Baines and Councillor Peter Garlick

To receive any declaration of personal interest and to note protocol matters.

(a)     The following member declared a personal interest in the following item, for the reason noted:

·       Councillor Edgar Owen in item 7.2 on the agenda (planning application number C19/0169/19/AM as his daughter-in-law worked for the applicant

The Member was of the opinion that it was a prejudicial interest and he withdrew from the Chamber during the discussion on the application.

(b)     The following members declared that they were local members in relation to the items noted:

·        Councillor Edgar Owen (a member of this Planning Committee), in relation to item 7.1 on the agenda (planning application number C18/0993/26/LL) 

·        Councillor Elin Walker Jones (a member of this Planning Committee), in relation to item 7.5 on the agenda (planning application number C19/0328/11/LL).

The Members withdrew to the other side of the Chamber during the discussion on the applications in question and did not vote on these matters.

To note any items that are a matter of urgency in the view of the Chairman for consideration.

None to note

The Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee, held on, 29^th April 2019, be signed as a true record.

The Chair signed the minutes of the previous meeting of this Committee, that took place on 29 April 2019, as a true record.

To submit the report of the Head of Environment Department.

The Committee considered the following applications for development.

Details of the applications were expanded upon and questions were answered in relation to the plans and policy aspects.

Vary condition 1 on planning permission C09A/0412/26/LL so as to extend the time granted to commence work for another 5 years

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Edgar Wyn Owen

Link to relevant background documents

Application Number C18/0993/26/LL – Land Adjacent to Hen Gapel, Ffordd Waunfawr, Caeathro

Change condition 1 of planning permission C09A/0412/26/LL in order to extend the time granted to commence work for a further five years

(a)       The Development Control Manager elaborated on the background of the application, and noted that the application was deferred in the committee meeting on 29.4.19 in order to allow the Planning Officers to consider the late observations of the Language Unit.

It was highlighted that the entire application was located within the development boundary of Caeathro as included in the LDP, in a relatively prominent locationin the centre of the village.  It was noted that the design, elevations, materials, plan or form of the houses had not changed since the previous application was approved in 2014 and so it was considered that the proposal remained acceptable. 

It was reported that the development included four affordable houses, which equated to 33%.  As no official valuation has been received to establish the open market value of the houses, it was noted that the developer would be required to agree an the price with the Planning Department in order to determine an appropriate discount for the affordable houses.  It was highlighted that this could be done by means of an appropriate condition that would ensure affordable housing.

When considering educational provision matters, it was anticipated that a total of 15 primary school pupils would emanate from this application for 12 houses, along with another of the developer's developments for 29 houses in Bontnewydd.  It was highlighted that Ysgol Bontnewydd, namely the catchment area school, had capacity for 182 pupils (167 at present).  Consequently, no financial contribution would be required for the educational provision as admitting an additional 15 pupils would not exceed the capacity.

It was considered that the proposal was acceptable in terms of the principle, location, scale, density, visual / residential amenities, road safety and infrastructure matters and in accordance with the relevant policies.

(b)     Taking advantage of the right to speak, the applicant’s agent noted the following main points:-

·           That the application had already been identified as suitable and had been approved in 2014

·           That it was located within the Development Plan

·           Due to the challenging period in the construction sector, the developer had not been able to act within the period of time and therefore he was requesting an extension

·           That no adaptations had been made to the original application

·           That the developer would use local contractors and local materials

(c)     The local member (a member of this Planning Committee) made the following main points:-

·                     That there was a need for housing in Caeathro

·                     That he was supportive of the development.

(ch)   It was proposed and seconded to approve the application.

(d)       In response to a comment regarding flooding concerns on the site, it was highlighted that Planning Officers had consulted with Welsh Water and Natural Resources Wales and they were satisfied with the mitigation measures and the relevant conditions  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Outline application for the erection of a rural enterprise dwelling

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Peter Garlick

Link to relevant background documents

Application No. C19/0169/19/AM - Gypsy Wood, Bontnewydd, Caernarfon

         Outline application for the erection of a rural enterprise dwelling

Attention was drawn to the late observations form that had been received

(a)       The Planning Manager elaborated on the background of the application, and noted that it had been submitted to the Planning Committee at the request of the Local Member.  It was explained that the decision had been deferred at the Planning Committee on 29.04.2019 in order to assess the content of the late letter received from the landowner's solicitor. The letter noted that the landowners would be  transferring the business to the applicants and selling the section of land where it was intended to build the house that was the subject of the application, to the applicants.

It was reported that the application site was located approximately 250m away from the development boundary of the village of Bontnewydd, and in terms of the Local Development Plan, it was located in open countryside.   As a result of the need to maintain and protect the countryside, special justification was needed to approve the construction of new houses in the countryside. It was noted that Policy PS17 of the Local Development Plan stated that only housing developments that complied with Planning Policy Wales and Technical Advice Note (TAN) 6: Planning for Sustainable Rural Communities, would be approved in open countryside.

Attention was drawn to paragraph 4.3.1 of TAN6 which noted that one of the few circumstances in which new isolated residential development in the open countryside may be justified was when accommodation was required to enable rural enterprise workers to live at, or close to, their place of work.  It was further explained that this essential need for accommodation would depend on the needs of
the rural enterprise concerned and not on the personal preference or circumstances of the applicant.

It was noted, should the situation with the land ownership and the business change officially in the future, then it would be required to re-assess the proposal in its entirety against the relevant sections of TAN 6.  It was reported that it was premature and inappropriate to assess the situation in the future as there was no certainty that this would happen.  Should the ownership circumstances officially change in future, it would be required for the applicants to provide the appropriate information to reassess the application in its entirety.

Attention was drawn to paragraph 4.11 of TAN 6 which noted that evidence must be provided that there are no other dwelling(s) or buildings that could be modified to satisfy the need. If dwelling(s) already exist on the enterprise, there would be a need to demonstrate why these cannot be used to satisfy the needs of the enterprise for residential workers, and the reason that labour or residential arrangements cannot be reorganised in order to ensure that the existing accommodation meets the needs of the enterprise without the need for another dwelling.

It was considered that this proposal of erecting a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

Demolish Penrhosgarnedd Centre and erect a new community centre and extend Ysgol y Faenol, new access road together with car parking

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Menna Baines

Link to relevant background documents

Demolish Penrhosgarnedd Centre and erect a new community centre and extend Ysgol y Faenol, new access road together with car park

Attention was drawn to the late observations form that had been received

The Members had visited the site.

(a)     The Planning Manager elaborated on the background of the application and noted that this was an application to rearrange and combine the sites of Ysgol y Faenol and the Community Centre in Penrhosgarnedd.  It was noted that the site was located in a residential area, with the majority within the development boundary of Bangor Sub-regional Centre as defined by the Anglesey and Gwynedd Joint Local Development Plan.   It was highlighted that the proposal included the following features:

·      demolishing the existing community centre

·      creating a new car park on the site of the community centre - the school's main vehicular entrance will move to the entrance of the car park, which will include 60 parking spaces and seven drop-off spaces.

·      creating a new link road leading from the car park to the existing school site (this would be outside the city's development boundary) - there will be four disabled parking spaces near the building

·      closing the main entrance to pedestrians, and creating a new entrance 55m to the west

·      demolishing the external buildings to the rear of the school

·      constructing extensions to the existing building, to include extra space for a new community centre. 

It was reported that Policy ISA 2 of the LDP was supportive of providing new community facilities and it was considered that the proposal met all of that policy's criteria.  Although the footprint of the new building would be approximately a third larger than the existing buildings, it was considered that the design was an architectural improvement to the existing unremarkable buildings.   Due to the urban nature of the site, it was not considered that the proposal was likely to cause unacceptable long-term detrimental impact to residents nearby or the community in general, although unavoidably, there would be some increase in noise and disturbance.   It was reiterated that any harmful impacts could be managed by imposing appropriate conditions on the development.

In response to late observations from Sport Wales, it was suggested that a desk exercise had been implemented by Sport Wales and that they were not familiar with the site.  It was reiterated that the proposal improved the resources, was a substantial improvement to the play area and was acceptable in terms of visual amenities.

(a)    It was proposed and seconded to approve the application.

(b)    In response to a question regarding the lack of response of some agencies and whether the committee should proceed without their comments, it was reported that the situation of not receiving comments was quite common and the likelihood was that a response or comment would have been received if these agencies had concerns.  The Planning Manager did not have an opinion on the suggestion that some of these agencies were unable to respond due to work pressures.

(  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Demolish existing outbuilding and construct a single storey extension to dwelling and conversion of outbuilding into 2 holiday units

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Simon Glyn

Link to relevant background documents

Demolish existing outbuilding and construct a single-storey extension to dwelling and   conversion of outbuilding into two holiday units

(a)      Following the appeal decision of Tynpwll Cottage, Lon-ty'n-pwll, Nefyn, Pwllheli (C18/0023/42/LL), it was suggested that the Committee should defer the decision on the Congl y Cae application in order for Planning Officers to get to grips with the context of the appeal.

(b)      It was proposed and seconded to defer the application.

RESOLVED to defer the application so that the Planning Officers have an opportunity to consider the context of appeal number  (C18/0023/42/LL)

Extension at the rear and at the front of the property

LOCAL MEMBER: Councillor Elin Walker Jones

Link to relevant background documents

Extension at the rear and at the front of the property

Attention was drawn to the late observations form that had been received

(a)  The Development Control Manager elaborated on the background of the application, noting that this was an application to extend the current two-storey house in the rear and in the front.   The rear extension would be two-storey and the front extension would be above the existing garage, with the exterior elevations of the extensions matching the existing elevations of the two-storey house.

In terms of the principle of the development, it was highlighted that Policy PCYFF2 of the LDP stated that proposals would be refused if the development would have a substantial impact on the health, safety or amenities of the occupiers of local property.  It was highlighted that Policy PCYFF 3 states that proposals will be approved, including extensions and changes to existing buildings and structures, if they comply with a number of criteria, including: that the proposal adds to or enhances the character or appearance of the site, the building or the area in terms of setting, appearance, scale and height.  It was considered that the proposal to extend the residential property was acceptable in principle and that the layout, form, materials, scale and design of the extensions would not create incongruous or dominating structures in this part of the streetscape.

In the context of general and residential amenities, it was noted that residential dwellings and their private gardens were located to the west (31 Bryn Eithinog) and to the north (26 Lôn y Bryn), adjacent to the application site. It was reported that an objection had been received from the occupier of number 31 Bryn Eithinog on the following grounds:-

·         Loss of light by creating oppressive structures.

·         Loss of privacy and overlooking into property known as 31 Bryn Eithinog.

·         Creation of additional traffic.

·         Impairing the area's character.

In response to the objection of loss of privacy and overlooking, it was explained that the extensions had been designed to avoid any direct overlooking into nearby property (31 Bryn Eithinog and 26 Lôn y Bryn in this context), therefore it was considered that the proposal, as submitted, would not lead to overlooking and loss of privacy to nearby residents.

In response to the objection of creating additional traffic, it was explained that the property was already a four-bedroom house and that there was no proposal to extend the number of bedrooms within the house.  Consequently, the Planning Officers did not anticipate that there would be an increase in traffic entering and exiting the site.  It was reiterated that the Transportation Unit did not have concerns regarding road safety or parking requirements and so the proposal was acceptable based on the requirements of Policy TRA2 and TRA4 of the LDP.

In response to the objection of impairing the area's character, it was reported that the nearby area included a varied collection of different types of residential dwellings on the grounds of elevations, scale, form and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.