Agenda item

PROPOSAL: Change of use of a strip of land from public open space to residential garden; erection of a two storey side extension.

OFFICER RECOMMENDATION: Permit

22.27        This application was for change of use of a strip of land from public open space to residential garden and erection of a two storey side extension.

22.28        The Planning Officer advised that the application related to a residential dwelling in Northway bordered to the south by an area of grassland.  It was proposed to remove the existing southern boundary wall and to re-erect it three metres further south, encapsulating a 57 metre squared strip of the grassland in order to facilitate a two storey side extension.  Whilst the land was currently within the ownership of Tewkesbury Borough Council, the Property team had indicated it would be amenable to sell if planning permission was granted.  There were no concerns over the proposal, as such, the Officer recommendation was to permit.

22.29        The Chair invited the applicant to address the Committee.  The applicant indicated that she did not believe the proposal would adversely impact on the character of the area as it would be similar to other properties in the street in terms of size and style and would have the same building lines.  The materials planned to be used would be identical to the existing property to be in keeping with the local aesthetic.  Although the intention was to purchase a strip of the overgrown land from the Council in order to achieve this, there would still be a significant amount of green space left to ensure the local environment was not negatively affected.  The applicant explained that she had lived in the property for 10 years and was hoping to extend in order to raise a family. Everything had been designed to minimise the impact on the area and, as her house was on the end, the proposal would have no impact on neighbours with the houses in Willis Walk facing the side of her property seeing little difference.  As it was only intended to extend by three metres, the gardens and views from No. 1 Willis Walk would not be overshadowed and she already had a driveway so there would be no highway impact.  With regard to concerns that had been raised in relation to flooding, she advised that she had not experienced any issues in the time she had lived there, including the most recent event in February 2020.  There had been no problems with the alleyway running behind her property which led to another nine houses and nothing had ever been mentioned in conversations with her neighbours regarding the 2007 floods.  The Officer report suggested that the proposal was unlikely to have an impact in terms of drainage; however, she had still taken this into consideration and explained that a replacement hedge would be planted to mark the new boundary and help absorb rainwater; the extension to the driveway would be block paving due to its porous nature; there would be no additional paving to increase surface run-off in the new space that would be gained in the back garden; and a significant amount of the grassed area that would still be owned by the Council would remain untouched so could continue to act as a soakaway.  The applicant indicated that she had sought advice from the Council at all points of the application process - including submitting a pre-planning application and the sale of the land being put to public and Parish Council consultation – and she hoped Members would agree that everything necessary had been considered to enable her to extend her family home positively within Northway taking into account environmental factors and impact on neighbouring amenity.

22.30        A Member drew attention to Page No. 124, Paragraph 2.0 of the Officer report and sought clarification as to what had already been permitted as reference was made to application 17/00197/PRE which seemed to reflect the proposal in the application before Members.  In response, the Planning Officer clarified that the application referenced by the Member was a pre-application – this arose when an applicant came forward with a pre-application enquiry.  In this case, the pre-application had been determined favourably which had resulted in the applicant submitting the full application Members were asked to determine today. 

22.31        The Chair indicated that the Officer recommendation was to permit the application and he sought a motion from the floor.  It was proposed and seconded that the application be permitted in accordance with the Officer recommendation and, upon being put to the vote, it was

RESOLVED          That the application be PERMITTED in accordance with the Officer recommendation.