Agenda item

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WARD NAME                                               Bere Ferrers

APPLICATION NUMBER                          4034/22/HHO            

LOCATION                                                   Pump Cottage, Bere Alston       

DEVELOPMENT                                     Householder application for

                                                                 proposed detached garage

*DM&L.46        

The Committee proceeded to consider the report that had been prepared by the relevant Planning Officer on the following application and considered also the comments of the Parish Council together with other representations received, which were listed within the presented agenda report and summarised below:

(a)  Application No.  4034/22/HHO        Ward: Bere Ferrers

Site Address: Pump Cottage, Bere Ferrers

       Development: Householder application for proposed detached garage

          Recommendation: Refusal

Key issues for consideration: Design, scale and massing, the impact on non-designated heritage asset and setting, impact on the Cornwall and West Devon World Heritage Site, Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

       Speakers included:

        Supporter: Mr H Thornton

        Bere Ferrers Parish Councillor: Cllr P Crozier

        Local Ward Member: Cllr A Blackman

During questions of the speakers, it was clarified that, should Members wish to propose Conditional Application of the planning application, then they would need to demonstrate how the identified harm would be mitigated.  It was confirmed that no weight should be given to the previous Structure, as there was just a concrete slab in situ. It was questioned if trellis work inside the hedge would help to mitigate the harm.

In debate, it was clarified that the Bere Peninsula Neighbourhood Plan stated that new development should avoid harming the unique assets of the area.  Also, there was also no carbon reduction measures proposed in the planning application as stated as being required on new development within the Neighbourhood Plan.

It was raised by a Member that, on the site visit, the Committee had observed several sheds in close proximity to the application site that appeared to have no relevance to the heritage assets outlined in the Officer’s published agenda report.  In reply, the Head of Development Management said that the decision made on those garages may have been poor decisions in the past, however with the current adopted policies and, in particular, the World Heritage site status, it is important to measure the decision against them.  The Officer also explained that it would be hard to condition against further development on this site, as it was an application for a garage and so it would not be possible to remove permitted development rights.

Committee Decision: Refusal

Reasons:

1.    The proposed garage does not meet the minimum internal dimensions for domestic garaging as set out within paragraph 8.5 of DEV29 of the Plymouth & South West Devon Joint Local Plan (2014- 2034) The small size of the proposed garage is substandard resulting in a building that is not fit for purpose. If approved, it will increase pressure for additional garage buildings within the site, further compromising available space within the site for on-site parking and turning and exacerbating the negative visual impact that a proliferation of small garden buildings would have within the Public Realm of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and World Heritage Site (WHS) protected Heritage Landscape. As such the proposal is contrary to policy DEV29 Plymouth & South West Devon Joint Local Plan (2014- 2034);

2.    The proposal introduces a new domestic feature on the approach to the settlement, which due to its siting, size and scale will detract from the setting of the host dwelling and other non-designated heritage assets within this linear hamlet. The proposal fails to conserve or enhance the outstanding universal value of the World Heritage Site (WHS) and is considered to cause less than substantial harm to the authenticity of the Outstanding Universal Value of the Site. The proposal is solely for private benefit and provides no mitigation to ameliorate the extent of harm to the WHS Public Realm. The proposal is therefore considered contrary to DEV20, DEV21, DEV 22 and DEV23, DEV25 of the Plymouth & South West Devon Joint Local Plan (2014- 2034), policies P3, P6, C2 and C9 of The Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site Management Plan 2020-2025 and paragraphs 176, 200 and 202 of the National Planning Policy Framework; and

3.    The application has failed to include a Heritage Statement proportionate to the asset’s importance as required by The Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site Supplementary Planning Document 2017 and paragraph 194 of the National Planning Policy Framework. As a result, the full impacts of the design scheme and the proposal cannot be ascertained and therefore adequately considered against Policy DEV21 in the Plymouth & South West Devon Joint Local Plan (2014- 2034).