For:     G & B B Houlbrooke & Son per Stansgate Planning Consultants, Conrad House, Birmingham Road, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 0AA

Ward: Ledbury

In accordance with the criteria for public speaking, Mr Davies spoke against the application.

Councillor BF Ashton, one of the Local Ward Members, had grave reservations about the application because the activity had been going on for a number of years with blatant disregard to the correct procedures that should have been met by the applicants.  He enquired what was defined as temporary because he felt that the situation could become permanent and lead to the need for enforcement.  He asked what steps could be taken to ensure that the matter was carefully monitored and regulated.  The Principal Planning Officer said that Government advice was that retrospective applications should be considered on merit and that the expediency of enforcement should be looked at.  He said that it was preferable to have a situation like this one controlled within the planning regulations to enable action to be taken if they were breached.  Landscaping would be required to mitigate the view of the caravans from the A417 and planning consent expiry would be monitored by the computerised system used by Planning Services.  Councillor Mrs JP French asked if the caravans could be painted green as on some other sites and the Principal Planning Officer said that conditions could be imposed for them to be painted within a certain time limit in a colour to be first agreed by the officers.

RESOLVED

That planning permission be granted subject to the Caravans being painted in a colour to be first agreed by the officers and the following conditions:-

1 -     The use hereby permitted shall cease and the caravans removed from the land prior to 1st March 2012.

         Reason:  In order that the agricultural need for the caravans upon the site can be reviewed.

2 -     Prior to 22nd December 2006 the applicant or any other person(s) carrying out the development hereby permitted shall submit and obtain the written approval of the Local Planning Authority in respect of a scheme of landscaping using indigenous species. This landscaping scheme shall include indications of all existing trees and hedgerows on the land, and details of any to be retained. The submitted scheme of landscaping must include details as to the location of all planting, the species, their size and the density of planting.

         Reason: To ensure that the visual impact of the development upon the wider landscape is satisfactorily mitigated.

3 -     All planting comprised in the approved details of landscaping shall be carried out prior to 1st March 2007. Any trees or plants which within the period until 1st March 2012 die, are removed or become seriously damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of similar size and species, unless the Local Planning Authority gives written consent to any variation.

         Reason:  To ensure that the visual impact of the development upon the wider landscape is satisfactorily mitigated.

4 -     There shall be no more than 69 caravans upon the site at any one time.

         Reason:  To safeguard the character and appearance of the countryside.

5 -     No external lighting shall be installed upon the site without the prior written consent of the Local Planning Authority.

         Reason:  To safeguard the character and appearance of the countryside.

           INFORMATIVES:

1 -     N15 - Reason(s) for the Grant of PP/LBC/CAC

2 -        In respect of the landscaping scheme required to be submitted pursuant to condition 2 the applicant is advised to engage the services of a suitably qualified landscape architect. The person appointed to prepare the landscaping scheme is advised to view the site from both short distances and long distances (including the A417 to the east and south-east). They are also advised to liaise closely with the Council's Landscape Officer (Juliet Wheatley - 01432-260157 - jwheatley@herefordshire.gov.uk).

3 -     For the avoidance of any doubt the plans to which this decision relate are:-

           Application Site Plan Drwg No 4787/1 received 21 June 2006;

         Drawing No 9146/1 received 21 June 2006;

         Drawing No 91456/2 received 21 June 2006.

 4 -    With regard any details submitted at a later date pursuant to condition 5 above the Local Planning Authority would advise the applicant to engage the services of a suitably qualified engineer (Institute of Lighting Engineers) and they would require the following details:

        -              Details as to the location of each luminaire supporting structure together with  the number of lights upon each structure;

        -             Details of lighting columns or supporting structures (e.g. height, material, colour);

     -             Details of each luminaire (i.e. lamp wattage, 'flat-glass design', forward throw projector);

        -   The mounting height of each luminaire;

     -   The tilt angle of each luminaire (n.b. the Local Planning Authority would recommend 0 degrees - i.e. parallel to the ground);

        -   The rotational angle of each luminaire;

     -   An appropriately scaled metric block plan detailing the resultant lux levels on the ground.