Agenda item

Erection of part single/two storey building comprising 2x2 bedroom flats, provision of associated cycle and refuse storage and landscaping.

Ward: Upper Norwood

Recommendation: Grant permission

Erection of part single/two storey building comprising 2x 2 bedroom flats, provision of associated cycle and refuse storage and landscaping.

Ward: Upper Norwood

Following the officers’ presentation, Committee Members asked questions on whether the site was located within a conservation area and were informed the boundary of the conservation area ran along the boundary of the site. In response to Member questions officers informed the Committee that the windows on the ground floor would look onto the street scene or rest of the site.

Members stated the layout of the site was unusual as part of the land would remained fenced off and queried what the ongoing maintenance of the site would be and whether it could be maintained by a community group. Officers stated that the applicant intended to maintain the land and that there would be a condition in place to ensure continued maintenance happened, however discussions could be held with the applicant with the regards to a community group maintaining the land.

Judy Ching and Bill Baylis, speaking in objection, raised the following points:

·         That while the applicant had sought to resolve previous design issues there would continue to be a loss of privacy

·         There would be overshadowing

·         Ambiguity with regards to the height of the building

·         Impact on the view of neighbours

·         A light impact report was being sought in respect to the common law right to natural light

·         Resident amenity had not been considered

·         Wildlife habitat would be lost

Shahjahan Khan, the applicant, raised the following points:

·         Property had no current use and had been vacant for 10 years

·         Flytipping had been experienced at the site

·         Previous applications for larger schemes had been rejected

·         Heritage officers and daylight specialists had been consulted

·         There was a 1.7m boundary along the back wall which people would be unable to see over

·         Proposed dwelling on first floor level will not impact on the privacy of neighbours

·         Period railings would run across the entire site and would be maintained

·         Nine Grade A trees would be planted

·         The proposal would enhance the conservation area

The Head of Planning stated that while there would be an impact on daylight and outlook it was the responsibility of planning to assess whether the impact would be reasonable. Officers stated that they had worked with the applicant to develop a scheme that would be more sensitive to the conservation area and would continue to work with the developer on how the additional land could be used.

The Committee noted that the land was a site that should be developed and that the proposal was modest and reflected the architecture of the surrounding area. Members stated that it would be important to ensure the land was properly managed and suggested a community group could be approached to maintain it in future.

The concerns of residents with regards to loss of daylight were acknowledged, however it was felt that the impact would not be unreasonable to warrant refusal.

After consideration of the officer's report, Councillor Paul Scott proposed and Councillor Humayun Kabir seconded the officer's recommendation and the Committee voted unanimously in favour, so planning permission was GRANTED for development at Land between 137-181 Church Road, SE19 2PR.