Proposed siting of 12 no. holiday lodges for use as tourist accommodation on land within the established planning unit.

Application approved in accordance with the case officer’s recommendation.

The senior planning officer provided a presentation on the application and the updates/representations received following the publication of the agenda.

In accordance with the criteria for public speaking Mr Thomas, applicant’s agent, spoke in support of the application.

In accordance with the council's constitution the local ward member spoke on the application. In summary, he explained that the application was at committee due to the number of significant local objections. Previously the site had been an outdoor activity centre as part of the PGL estate which provided breaks for young people. The activity centre had been open until 2019 and had been considered noisy and was accessed by larger vehicles such as coaches. There had been an expectation that the current application would generate similar levels of noise and traffic movements. However, it was likely that there would be a significant reduction in the level of noise and much smaller vehicles would be accessing the site. The proposed removal of the tower on the existing site would have a positive impact upon the landscape. It was considered that the proposal would have a neutral impact up on the landscape and it was noted that assessments of the application had determined that the requirements of the CROW act had been met. The site would include a number of environmentally sustainable measures and the proposed improvements to the access would benefit local highways. The addition of a condition requiring a noise management plan was supported. It was felt that the application complied with core strategy policies SS6 and SD1 and the local ward member was in agreement with the recommendation for approval.

The committee debated the application. There was division among the members of the committee regarding the acceptability of the application.

It was the contention of some members that the site would have an unacceptable impact upon the local landscape and it was noted that part of the screening at the site was deciduous which would only be effective when trees were in leaf. The proposal for 12 chalets on the site was an intensification of development and the scale and quantity on site was felt to be excessive. The application did not enhance or protect the national landscape and was felt to be contrary to national planning policy framework (NPPF) paragraph 89. A reduction in the number of chalets was encouraged to improve the impact of the site on the locality. The design of the chalets was not sympathetic to the surrounding area and was felt to be contrary to policy BAF4 of the Brampton Abbotts and Foy neighbourhood development plan (NDP). Due to the impact on the landscape the application was contrary to core strategy policy LD1 and it was not felt that the applicant had adequately addressed the issue of connectivity in order to satisfy core strategy policy E1.

It was the contention of other members that the application would encourage tourism into the county. It was felt that the new use of the site would have less  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5