Application 36439D - Gulson Plating David Road

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Planning Committee 30/11/2006
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PUBLIC
COMMITTEE REPORT 12
Report of Head of Planning and Strategic Transportation
APPLICATION No. - 36439/D
Description of Development - Erection of 3 storey block of flats (revised
submission)
Site - Gulson Plating David Road
Applicant - Heron Designer Homes Ltd
Ward - St Michaels
INTRODUCTION
• The purpose of this report is to consider the above application.
RECOMMENDATION
• Planning Committee are recommended to delegate the grant of planning
permission to officers subject to conditions, and subject to the completion of
appropriate legal agreements to secure a contribution towards resident
parking scheme and off site play provision.
DESCRIPTION OF APPLICATION SITE
• The application site comprises vacant land situated on the south side of
David Road. The premises were formerly used as a plating works, which
closed approximately 2 years ago and the site has now been cleared.
• The site has an area of 0.09 hectares and is flat.
• The surrounding area is predominantly residential. The area is
characterised by two storey, pre-war, terraced dwellings, although there are
some later semi-detached dwellings.
• A notable feature of the area is that there are a number of dwellings with
two storey front elevations stepping up to 3 storey rear elevations. This
includes dwellings opposite the site in Monks Road. The gable elevations of
those dwellings are prominent in the street scene in David Road.
• The site is bounded by a two storey dwelling at 54 David Road to the east.
To the south the site is bounded by a private pedestrian access to the rear

of dwellings in Northfield Road. The rear elevations of those dwellings face
the site. There is a social club to the west, separated from the site by a
public footpath.
PROPOSAL
• Erection of three-storey block of flats.
• The proposals include 20 units, comprising 17 two-bedroom flats and 3 onebedroom
flats.
• The proposal would be a three-storey building fronting onto David Road,
with a three-storey rear wing adjacent the western boundary projecting onto
the rear boundary.
• The front elevation of the building would be two storeys with dormer
windows in the roof.
• The rear elevation of the element adjacent 54 David Road would be two
storeys.
• A rear parking area comprises 20 spaces and would be accessed via an
archway from David Road. A secure bike store would be provided in the
rear parking area.
• All but one of the 4 ground floor flats would have front doors opening out
onto the street. The first and second floor flats would be accessed by a
lobby area from the archway leading to raised walkways to the rear.
• Applicants propose to enter a Section 106 agreement to provide:
Contribution of £13,350 towards a residents parking scheme for the
surrounding area.
contribution of £10,000 towards off site play space provision.
• To assess the housing market the agents have sought professional advice
from various local estate agents who have confirmed that the current
housing market does not support the type and scale of flats previously
proposed, which included 3 bed apartments with very large bedrooms and
living rooms. Estate agents have stated;
"...I really see a ceiling of £125,000 on units here and in the attached
schedule you will see that only 6 apartments are within this level.
Certainly the units that are in the high figures of around
£140,000/£145,000 will in my opinion be virtually unsaleable"
(Coopers, May 2006
"…the problem with the scheme is that it is too expensive to build in
its current format and overall most of the flats are too large"
(Shortland Horne, May 2006)
"…having now considered the current scheme in detail I have to say that
we have considerable reservations about the design which provides for
overly large one, two and three bed units which we feel fail to maximise
the potential development value of the site" (Loveitts Commercial, June
2006)
RELEVANT PLANNING HISTORY
• Planning permission (36439/C) was granted in March 2005 for the
demolition of the existing building and erection of 3-storey block comprising
15 flats. This was subject to the applicants entering into a legal agreement
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providing £10,000 towards a resident parking scheme and £5,000 towards
off-site children's play facilities.
DEVELOPMENT PLAN POLICIES
• CDP: OS4, OS5, OS8, OS9, OS10, EM5, EM6, H9, H12, E8, AM17, AM19,
AM22, BE2
• RPG: UR1, UR3, UR4, CF1, QE3, QE4
• SPG: 'Design Guidance for New Residential Development', Draft Parking
Standards (draft May 2004), Urban Design (July 2004)
• PPG's : PPS1, PPG3, PPG13
STATUTORY CONSULTATION RESPONSES
• Severn Trent Water – No objection
PUBLIC RESPONSES
• Notification letters were sent to the following addresses on 29.09.06:
- 1, 54 & 56 David Road;
- 56 & 57 Monks Road;
- Charterhouse Working Men's Club, 48 David Road; and
- 64-72 (evens) & 78-86 (evens) Northfield Road.
• Two site notices were put up in David Road on 29.09.06.
• A press notice was published on 5.10.06.
• 4 letters were received from local residents at 54 David Road, 57 Monks
Road, Charterhouse Residents Group and 26 St Margaret's Road. Previous
correspondence from the original application was attached to their current
letters. The comments raise objection to the proposals on the following
grounds: (a) insufficient parking in an area with serious parking problems;
(b) reduction in sunlight and daylight for surrounding dwellings; (c)
overlooking of surrounding properties and gardens; (d) three storey building
is out of character with the rest of the street, which is characterised by two
storey buildings; (f) over development of the site; (g) lack of amenities for
the number of people that will be brought into the area; (h) three storey
element adjacent to two storey dwelling at 54 David Road; (i) site is
designated for industrial/employment use; (j) issues of contamination
• A multiple letter of objection was received and signed by 80 local residents
in the areas of David Road, Botoner Road, Monks Road, Carmelite Road
and Northfield Road. The letter raises objection to the proposals on the
following grounds; size, scale, occupancy levels and contamination of the
existing site.
ISSUES
• CDP Policy H9 dealing with windfall housing sites indicates that proposals
for housing development on sites not identified will be permitted subject to:
- compatibility with nearby uses;
- the provision of an attractive residential environment;
- convenient pedestrian access to local facilities;
- being well served by public transport; and
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- compatibility with other plan policies.
• CDP Policy H12 states that a high standard of design will be required for
new housing development in the City and that the density of development
should represent the most efficient use of sites consistent with the principles
of good design.
• CDP Policy E8 states that proposals for the redevelopment of employment
sites for non-employment uses will not be permitted, unless substantial
evidence demonstrates that re-use for employment purposes is not realistic
or would produce unacceptable environmental, amenity or traffic problems.
• CDP Policy AM17 states that levels of car parking must ensure that
developments do not cause car-parking problems in the vicinity.
• CDP Policy AM22 states that new developments will be required to have
safe and appropriate access to the highway system.
• When granting the earlier permission for residential development Members
were satisfied that economic appraisals had demonstrated that
redevelopment for employment purposes would not be viable. Furthermore,
the site is very restricted site and employment use was not considered
compatible within a predominantly residential area and so closely adjoined
by dwellings. Policy E8 was therefore satisfied and there have been no
material changes in circumstances.
• The applicants have submitted a satisfactory report on the contamination of
the site including general proposals for decontamination. Condition
recommended requiring the submission of a detailed remediation scheme.
• When considering the earlier scheme Members requested amendments
due to concerns relating to the level of on-site parking and possible impact
on the surrounding highway network. As such the number of units was
reduced from 20 to 15 comprising 2 three-bed flats, 8 two-bed flats, 3 onebed
flats and 2 duplex flats. However, while the number of units was
reduced, the units were generally larger and the footprint of the building
remained the same. 16 parking spaces were provided on site.
• The current scheme proposes 20 flats with 20 on-site parking spaces.
• The footprint of the building in this scheme is slightly reduced (42.25sqm)
from the earlier permission in order to increase the level of car parking on
site.
• The proposal remains a high-density scheme. However, the surrounding
area includes high-density housing and the applicant maintains that such a
high density is necessary to produce a viable scheme, given the high costs
of decontamination and advice as to expected values.
• There is very little private amenity space within the development as one of
the conditions of the decontamination report is that the whole of the site
should be covered with hard surfaces, which would preclude any new soft
landscaping. The proposal includes a similar level of green amenity space
as the previous scheme in the form of raised planting beds. The central
parts of the first and second floor access walkways also provide a small
element of outdoor amenity space in those areas. Taking into account the
constraints of this particular site, I am satisfied that an acceptable standard
of living conditions for future occupiers would be provided.
• Local residents have repeatedly expressed concerns that the application
represents an overdevelopment of the site and stated that a scheme with 3
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or 4 houses plus garages would be preferred. The applicant responded by
stating that terraced housing with gardens had been considered, but that
this would not be financially viable, and the requirement of the
decontamination report for the site to be completely covered with hard
surfaces dictates that houses with gardens would not be appropriate.
• With regard to car parking, the amended proposals include 20 off street
parking spaces for the 20 flats, a ratio of 1 space per flat. This accords with
your draft parking standards, which are expressed as maximums.
Nevertheless, CDP Policy AM17 states that levels of car parking must
ensure that developments do not cause car-parking problems in the vicinity.
Residents have consistently raised concerns about the problem of on-street
parking, including concerns about regularly being unable to park near to
their own houses. They have raised concerns that the off street parking
provision will not accommodate all the cars from occupiers of the proposed
flats and that the proposals would therefore exacerbate existing problems.
• The applicant have indicated that they consider the parking problems to be
more of an issue during university term time but have agreed to make
contribution towards a residents parking scheme.
• In considering the design of the proposal I am of the opinion that the
proposal would have an acceptable impact on the character and
appearance of the area having regard to the earlier permission:
There has been no increase in the height of the building
On the David Road elevation, following negotiations, only 1 additional
dormer window is proposed and 1 roof light. Additionally, 1 roof light is
proposed on the rear elevation of the building. It is not considered that
the additional dormer and roof light will over dominate the roof space nor
will they adversely effect the elevation facing David Road.
the proposed variation in height between the proposed development and
adjacent buildings will be viewed in the context of similar variations in the
height of traditional existing buildings in the surrounding area.
2/3 storey dwellings already exist in surrounding streets (and opposite
the site), which are already higher than the predominant 2 storey
buildings. Furthermore, the element adjacent to No. 54 is stepped down
to a height of 9.15m, which serves to blend the building into the street
scene, and the eaves height of the proposed building would be
comparable with that of existing dwellings in the street.
the design of the front elevation has incorporated traditional features
from established buildings in the surrounding area.
the asymmetrical profile of the roof of the proposal, with a 2 storey front
elevation and a 3 storey rear elevation, is a common feature on
traditional buildings in the surrounding area, including dwellings
immediately opposite the site in Monks Road. The side profile of the
building would not be prominent in the street scene due to the position of
adjacent buildings.
• The back-to-back separation distance with the dwellings in Northfield Road
to the rear would be at least 25 metres, which would exceed the minimum
23m distance specified in SPG. Dwellings on the opposite side of David
Road are set side-on to the site.
• The main parts of the first and second floor walkways would be at least 8m
from the rear boundaries of the adjacent dwellings in Northfield Road and at
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least 23m from the rear elevations of those dwellings. The deeper central
section of the walkways would be at least 6m from the rear boundaries of
the adjacent dwellings in Northfield Road and at least 22m from the rear
elevations of those dwellings, and would be provided with a slatted screen
to preserve the privacy of the dwellings to the rear.
• The proposed building is taller than the building previously on site and
therefore there would be some impact on daylight and sunlight for
surrounding dwellings. However, the proposal meets the normal separation
standards and is situated to the north and west of the adjoining dwellings. It
is to the south of dwellings on the opposite side of the David Road, but it
would be at least 12m from those dwellings and therefore I am satisfied that
it would not result in unacceptable loss of daylight and sunlight. The building
would not infringe the BRE 25° Guideline (measured on the vertical plane)
for daylight and sunlight for houses in Northfield Road at the rear. There are
no houses with windows directly facing the site on the opposite side of
David Road.
• the part of the building adjacent No. 54 David Road has been moved back
in order to comply with Members' previous requests regarding the building
line. Consequently, it would now project 3.2m beyond the rear elevation of
No. 54 David Road.
• In terms of the impact of the proposals on No. 54 it is notable that the
element adjacent No. 54 is the lowest part of the development and has a
two-storey rear elevation, allowing for a lower rear eaves line than the
remainder of the development. The proposed building would not infringe the
45-degree line in relation to the nearest habitable window in No. 54.
CONCLUSION
• I therefore recommend that permission be granted subject to the conditions
stated, and subject to the completion of a satisfactory Section 106
agreement.
SCHEDULE
Condition(s)
1. The development to which this permission relates must be begun
not later than the expiration of 3 years from the date of this permission.
2. The development shall be carried out only in full accordance with
sample details of the facing, roofing and surfacing materials which have
been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.
3. No windows or openings (apart from any shown on the approved
drawings) shall be formed in the east facing elevation, west facing
elevation or the part of the south facing elevation hatched black on
drawing no. 7966-20-03 B, of the flats hereby approved without the written
approval of the local planning authority and if any additional windows are
subsequently approved they shall only be glazed or re-glazed in
accordance with such approved details.
4. No development or other works shall commence on site unless and
until :
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a) a scheme for the remediation of contamination on the whole site has
been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning
authority;
b) those approved remediation works have been completed in full; and
c) a soil validation report, detailing the effectiveness of the remediation
works, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local
planning authority.
5. If any contamination is noted during development that was not
outlined in the site investigation by WSP Environmental Ltd (Ref.
12160453/002, dated April 2004), all work on site shall cease and written
details of the contamination and proposed remediation measures shall be
submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority. No
further works shall take place unless and until the approved remediation
scheme has been implemented in accordance with the approved details
and a further soil validation report, detailing the effectiveness of the
remediation works, has been submitted to and approved in writing by the
local planning authority.
6. On completion of the development, the whole of the site shall be
hard surfaced in accordance with the recommendations of the site
investigation by WSP Environmental Ltd (Ref. 12160453/002, dated April
2004) and shall remain so at all times thereafter unless otherwise agreed
in writing by the local planning authority. For the avoidance of the doubt,
the proposed raised planting beds shall be located on top of this hard
surfacing and shall be independent of the soils beneath.
7. No part of the residential development shall be occupied until the
amenity space and bin storage areas have been laid out in full
accordance with the approved drawings
8. No use shall be made of the first and second floor amenity space
until the slatted screens shown on the first and second floor balconies
have been installed in full accordance with the approved plans. The
slatted screens shall be retained at all times thereafter and shall not be
altered unless approved in writing by the local planning authority.
9. The gates across the vehicular access driveway shall be located no
closer than 5.5metres from the back of the highway and shall be hung in
such a manner that they do not open outwards towards the public
highway.
10. The development shall proceed only in accordance with detailed
measures to ensure that any vehicle, plant or equipment leaving the
application site does not carry mud or deposit other materials onto the
public highway, which shall have been submitted to and approved in
writing by the local planning authority. Such approved measures shall
thereafter continue while construction operations are taking place.
11. No development shall commence until details of any lighting or
illumination of any part of the building or site have been submitted to and
approved by the local planning authority and such works, and use of that
lighting and/or illumination, shall be carrried out and operated only in full
accordance with those approved details.
12. None of the dwellings hereby permitted shall be occupied until the
communal car parking spaces to be provided have been completed and
marked out in accordance with the approved drawings and made
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available for use. That parking provision shall thereafter remain available
for that use.
13. The development shall only be undertaken in accordance with
details of both hard and soft landscaping works which have been
submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.
Details of hard landscaping works shall include boundary treatment,
including full details of the proposed boundary walls, railings and gates
to be erected, specifying the colour of the railings and gates; footpaths;
and hard surfacing materials. The hard landscaping works shall be
completed in full accordance with the approved details within 3 months of
the first occupation of the residential accommodation hereby permitted;
and all planting shall be carried out in accordance with the approved
details in the first planting and seeding seasons following the first
occupation. Any tree or shrub which within a period of 5 years from the
completion of the development dies, is removed or becomes seriously
damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with
another of similar size and species, unless the local planning authority
gives written consent to any variation.
14. Within one month of the erection of the fencing and gates hereby
approved, it shall be colour coated in full accordance with the details that
have been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning
authority. Any replacement or modification shall be colour coated to
match within one month of being carried out.
Reason(s)
1. To comply with Section 91 of the Town and Country Planning Act
1990.
2. To ensure that the proposed development has a satisfactory
external appearance in the interests of the visual amenities of the area in
accordance with Policy BE2 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
3. To ensure the amenities of adjoining properties are not
detrimentally affected through overlooking or loss of privacy in
accordance with Policies BE2 & H4 of the Coventry Development Plan
2001.
4. To safeguard health, safety and the environment in accordance
with Policy EM6 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
5. To safeguard health, safety and the environment in accordance
with Policy EM6 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
6. To safeguard health, safety and the environment in accordance
with Policy EM6 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
7. In the interests of the amenities of the future occupants of the
residential accommodation in accordance with Policies BE2 & H12 of the
Coventry Development Plan 2001.
8. To ensure the amenities of adjoining properties are not
detrimentally affected through overlooking or loss of privacy in
accordance with Policies BE2 & H4 of the Coventry Development Plan
2001.
9. In the interests of highway safety in accordance with Policy AM22
of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
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10. In the interests of highway safety and the amenities of the
occupiers of nearby properties in accordance with Policy AM1 of the
Coventry Development Plan 2001.
11. To ensure that any lighting is designed so as not to detrimentally
affect the amenities of the occupiers of nearby properties in accordance
with Policies EM5 & EM8 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
12. To ensure adequate parking provision within the development in
the interests of the amenities of the locality and highway safety in
accordance with Policies AM17, AM22 and H12 of the Coventry
Development Plan 2001.
13. To ensure adequate parking provision within the development in
the interests of the amenities of the locality and highway safety in
accordance with Policies AM17, AM22 & H12 of the Coventry
Development Plan 2001.
14. To ensure that the proposed development has a satisfactory
external appearance in the interests of the visual amenities of the area in
accordance with Policy BE2 of the Coventry Development Plan 2001.
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS
PROPER OFFICER: Head of Planning and Strategic Transportation
AUTHOR: Richard Sykes – Group Leader (024) 7683 1224
PAPERS OPEN TO PUBLIC INSPECTION (all at City Development
Directorate, Civic Centre 4, Much Park Street)
Planning Application File: 36439/D
Coventry Development Plan 2001
Regional Planning Guidance for the West Midlands, RPG11, June 2004
CASE OFFICER : Rebecca Hughes
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