Construction of house and garage
LOCAL MEMBER:
Councillor W Gareth Roberts
Minutes:
Construction of house and garage
a)
The Development Control Manager expanded on the
background of the application to erect a new dwelling and garage in the rural
village of Rhiw within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Landscape of
Outstanding Historic Interest. The proposed house would be two-storey, finished
with a slate roof and local stone exterior walls. As part of the application, a
letter was received from Derwen, Integrated Disabled
Children's Team, outlining the family's needs as one of the applicant's sons
had been registered with a permanent disability.
Attention was drawn to the relevant policies in the
report.
In terms of the principle of the development, Rhiw
was designated as a rural village. Attention was drawn to the relevant housing policy
(Policy CH5) which noted that proposals had to comply with all criteria within
the policy. Six of those criteria had
been discussed in detail and consequently, it had been considered that the proposal was contrary to policy CH5 of the GUDP on the grounds that no
need for an affordable house has been proven, the site was not located
immediately adjacent to a building that had been highlighted, and that its size
was substantially larger than an affordable house. In considering the site, in
the context of open countryside, it was reiterated that only houses for people
employed in agriculture, forestry or other land-based industry could be located
on the site, in accordance with the requirements of Planning Policy Wales and
Technical Advice Note 6: Planning for Sustainable
Rural Communities (2010).The proposal would be contrary to these requirements
as there was no agricultural, forestry or other land-based need for the
proposed house.
It
was considered that the proposal, in terms of its size and scale was contrary
to the requirements of Policy B22 of the GUDP and that it would impact the form
and character of the village. Reference
was made in the report that the house was substantially larger than the size of
an affordable house and it was considered that the size of the property could
be reduced having discussed the needs of the disabled child. It was noted that
if the property was reduced in its size, that this would also overcome the concerns
about the impact of the proposal on the character and landscape of the village.
It was highlighted that the main requirements of
the application was to provide a suitable house for a family who had one son
with permanent disabilities. However, having weighed-up the proposal against
the relevant policies it was concluded that the principle of the development
did not comply with the basic requirements of the Council's housing policies.
No evidence had been submitted to demonstrate whether the candidate had a
genuine affordability need, and no intention had been shown to limit future
occupancy. Despite the applicant's needs the Council was not convinced, based
on the submitted information, that worthy reasons had been submitted to deviate
from the Council's current policies or national policies relating to Affordable
Housing.
(a)
Taking advantage of the right to speak,
the applicant’s representative noted the following main points:-
·
That he was supportive of the application.
·
That it was incredibly important for the family to
have a home in Rhiw as the family had support within the village
·
It was difficult to adapt their existing home for a
disabled person
·
A suitable house was needed - needs were increasing
b)
The local
member (not a member of this Planning Committee) noted the following main
points:-
·
That he
accepted the report was a difficult one
·
That the family's unique and unusual
needs were increasing and that there was no suitable house available for them
in Rhiw.
·
That the
family needed their family network and support.
·
Accepted the recommendation to refuse;
however, the Committee needed to consider an 'exceptional' situation.
·
The
ground floor of the plan was acknowledged to be in accordance with the needs;
however, the second floor could be reduced - the applicant accepted this.
·
The
time-scale was tight as the Joint Local Development Plan would not be
acknowledging Rhiw as a site for development.
·
Urged the
Committee to delegate powers to the officers to hold further discussions with
the applicant to meet the evident and valid needs of the family and seek a
solution with an appropriate and suitable plan.
·
This plan
was an exception to the planning system.
c)
In response to these observations, the
Senior Planning Service Manager noted that the application was contrary to the
Council's planning policies as there was no evidence that the applicant was
eligible for an affordable house and that the house would not be affordable due
to its size. Nevertheless, he emphasised that this case was unique and
challenging and that there was a specific need in this case due to the family's
exceptional circumstances. It was noted that if the Committee wished to
consider this application as an exceptional case, then that would be the
Committee's decision; however, he emphasised that this situation was
exceptional and that it would not create any kind of precedent for the
future. It was highlighted that the
house could not be eligible as an affordable house due to its size and should
the Committee decide to approve the application, then it would not be possible
to impose a 106 agreement on the house.
ch) Proposed and seconded to approve the
application contrary to the recommendation
d)
During the ensuing discussion, the following main
observations were noted by members:
·
The value of this house did not matter
- the family's needs were greater than this
·
The situation was unique
·
That there was no need for discussions
to reduce the size of the house - approve in accordance with the plans.
RESOLVED to approve the application contrary to the recommendation on
the grounds that the specific needs and exceptional situation in this case
outweighed the usual planning policy requirements.
General
conditions relating to:
1.
Time
2. In accordance with the plans.
3. Slates.
4. Materials.
5. Transportation conditions
6. Welsh Water conditions
Supporting documents: