Public reports pack PDF 8 MB - Agendas, Meetings and Minutes

site this is not considered inappropriate or unacceptable. The setting of the buildinginto the back of the site, with the elevated ground levels to the rear and sidesmitigates the appearance of the building and lessens the impact on the properties tothe East and West. Comments concerning the height and size of the building arenoted, but the building is not considered unacceptable. The change in levelsbetween the front of the site and the buildings adjacent to the highway means thatthe ridge of the building will sit lower than Old Bartons and Monastery Lodge. Theridge will only be approximately 1m higher than that of the existing garage to therear of Monastery Lodge. Following amendments, the bulk of the building hasincreased slightly, as the external staircase has been enclosed following contributorcomments.5.65.75.85.95.105.11The relevant policies in the adopted Cherwell Local Plan require that the design,external appearance, character and scale of the development is in keeping with andrespects the context of the surrounding buildings. It is considered that the use oftraditional materials and the steeply pitched roof do respect the character andcontext of the area and as such are in accordance with the policies. As discussedabove, the size and scale is also considered to be in keeping with the scale andappearance of the area.With regard to the issues of overlooking and loss of privacy, raised by contributorsand as a result of the North and South facing roof-lights, despite the objectionsraised, the roof-lights are considered acceptable. It is not considered that anyoverlooking as a result of these roof-lights will cause enough harm to warrant orsustain a reason for refusal. In terms of potential overlooking to the North, towardsMonastery Lodge and Pemberley, the proposed building is greater than 22m awayfrom the rear windows of these properties. As 22m is the recommended separationbetween habitable room-windows in residential properties, this separation betweenan office space and private dwelling is considered acceptable. With regard to thepotential for overlooking to the rear of the proposal, to the South, it is accepted thatthere is potential for views into the garden areas to the rear, but given the size ofthe gardens, the level of tree/vegetation screening to the Southern boundary, anypotential overlooking is not considered harmful or unacceptable.The proposal is not considered to cause any unacceptable impact on theneighbours to the East and West of the site. The proposal will be visible, but willonly present a gabled elevation to these properties, the appearance and impact ofwhich is considered acceptable.The size, location and orientation of the proposal will not cause any significant orunacceptable overshadowing or loss of light to any of the adjoining properties.Another key issue in the application and raised by many of the contributors is thebusiness use of the office space above the garage, the compatibility of this use withthe residential area, the traffic/highway safety/parking implications of this use andany possible intensification of the use.According to the information supplied with the application, the applicant has beenrunning his accountancy business from the property since 2000; with the samenumber of staff and visitors expected to continue were the business to move intothe separate building. Any potential expansion of the business following grant ofplanning permission would be limited by the size of the building. Given the scale ofPage 26