Town and Country Planning Act 1990 Appeal Under Section 78 by Emery Planning on Behalf of Glennmark Trading Ltd
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TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990 APPEAL UNDER SECTION 78 BY EMERY PLANNING ON BEHALF OF GLENNMARK TRADING LTD. HIGH PEAK REFERENCE: HPK/2015/0471 PLANNING INSPECTORATE REFERENCE: APP/H1033/W/16/3155484 PROOF OF EVIDENCE OF MELISSA KURIHARA MLPM, MRTPI 1 Proof of Evidence on behalf of High Peak Borough Council Brown Edge Road, Buxton Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. Planning Policy 4 3. The Case for High Peak Borough Council 9 4. Conclusions 19 Appendix 1: Appeal decision Land off Craythorne Road, Stretton APP/B3410/W/15/3134848 Appendix 2: Appeal decision Land between Ashflats & A449, Mosspit, Stafford APP/Y3425/A/14/2217578 Appendix 3: Appeal decision Land bounded by Gresty Lane, Crewe APP/R0660/A/13/2209335 Appendix 4: Deliverable supply tables (large sites and allocations) Appendix 5: Proof of Evidence of A G Massie APP/H1033/W/16/3147726 Appendix 6: Rebuttal Proof of Evidence of A G Massie APP/H1033/W/16/3147726 2 1. Introduction 1.1. This Proof of Evidence has been prepared by Melissa Kurihara, Principal Planning Consultant at Urban Vision Partnership Ltd, a multi disciplinary planning consultancy based in Salford. 1.2. I am a chartered town planner with significant professional experience in housing land supply. I hold a Masters in Landscape, Planning and Management from University of Manchester and I am a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute. Prior to joining Urban Vision I worked in various planning policy teams within local government. 1.3. I have experience of all stages in Local Plan production from initial evidence gathering and the establishment of the correct OAN, through to submission, independent examination and adoption. I specialise in housing land supply assessment, both methodology and realistic assessment of deliverability. 1.4. This Proof of Evidence is provided on behalf of High Peak Borough Council in relation to the appeal against the refusal to grant outline planning consent for residential development including the demolition of 70 and 72 Brown Edge Road. All matters are reserved save for access. 1.5. This evidence which I have prepared and provide for this appeal within this proof is true, and has been prepared and is given in accordance with the guidance of my professional institution, the Royal Town Planning Institute. I confirm that the opinions expressed are my true and professional opinions. In reaching my conclusions on the deliverable supply, I have also placed reliance on the evidence of Ged Massie, which was presented on behalf of the LPA at the Appeal into Land off Station Road, Tunstead Milton (APP/H1033/W/16/3147726). 1.6. I address matters of 5 year land supply only. Mr Beswick covers landscape and Mr White covers all other matters including the planning balance. 3 Proof of Evidence on behalf of High Peak Borough Council Brown Edge Road, Buxton 2. Planning Policy The Development Plan 2.1. Section 38 (6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) requires that this appeal must be determined in accordance with the provisions of the Development Plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. 2.2. For the purposes of this appeal the Development Plan compromises the High Peak Local Plan (2016) High Peak Local Plan 2.3. On 24th March 2016 the High Peak Local Plan was found sound following its Examination by an independent Inspector. The Inspector’s Report (CD3.1) concluded that the High Peak Local Plan provides an appropriate basis for the planning of the Borough until 2031, provided a number of Main Modifications were made to the Plan. On 14th April 2016 the Council adopted the new Plan. 2.4. Between 2012 and 2016 High Peak Borough Council carried out a series of consultation and evidence gathering stages to prepare the High Peak Local Plan. Options consultation (2012) Preferred Options (2013) Additional consultation (regarding potential changes to the Preferred Options) (December 2013) Pre-submission Local Plan (2014) 2.5. At the end of the staged process of Plan production and consultation, representations on soundness and legal compliance were sought prior to the Plan being submitted to the Secretary of State for independent Examination on 28th August 2014. Mr Mike Moore MRTPI CMILT MCIHT was appointed as the Planning Inspector by the Secretary of State to conduct the independent Examination, with initial hearing sessions on key issues taking place in January/February 2014. These initial sessions considered Duty to Cooperate, legal compliance, the development strategy, housing need and supply and the site selection process, to test the Plan’s legal compliance and soundness. 4 2.6. At the examination stage of the Plan, representations were received from Emery Planning on behalf of a range of clients. Emery Planning attended the hearings and raised the following points: As submitted the Plan does not meet the full objectively assessment of housing need Additional land surrounding towns and villages should be safeguarded to meet future development needs beyond the plan period Concern that there would not be a five year land supply on adoption Further sites should be added for flexibility Assumptions made as to the availability and deliverability of sites in the Plan will lead to the plan under delivering as not all sites are regarded as deliverable 2.7. Following initial hearings in January/February 2014 the Council undertook further work to assess the implications of the DCLG 2012-based sub-national household projections and the Strategic Development Site at Land at Woodhead Road, Glossop. 2.8. A further hearing session to discuss this work was held in September 2015. The proposed Main Modifications to the Plan were subject to a period of consultation between 10th December 2015 and 28th January 2016. The representations received, together with a summary and the Borough Council response to these representations, were forwarded to the Planning Inspector for his consideration. 2.9. The Inspector’s Final Report was received on 24th March 2016 which marked the end of the independent Examination (CD3.1). The report concludes that the High Peak Borough Plan provides an appropriate basis for the planning of the Borough until 2031, providing a number of modifications are made to the Plan. 2.10. A key consideration at Examination was the assessment of the Council’s 5 year land supply position and the consideration of the trajectory for house building over the Plan period. Paragraph 63 of the Inspector’s Report provides useful context to the EIP’s consideration of 5 year land supply, stating that “Taking account of the evidence before me from all parties relating to the position at the time it was calculated by the Council; the housing land supply is likely to be less than the Council estimates. Nevertheless, it would be closer to six years than five. Recent progress on some individual sites may have been different to that assumed when the supply was calculated. Nonetheless, I am satisfied that on adoption there would be a reasonable prospect that the 5 Proof of Evidence on behalf of High Peak Borough Council Brown Edge Road, Buxton Plan would result in an appropriate supply of sites to provide 5 years worth of housing in accordance with the Framework”. 2.11. It is clear that the Inspector received representations from various parties (including the appellant’s agent) regarding 5 year land supply. Representations suggested various approaches to methodology and raised queries over deliverability. The Inspector considered all of these and concluded that he was satisfied that the Council could demonstrate a 5 year land supply and that the allocations were deliverable. 2.12. Paragraph 64 of his report states: “The Council’s suggested main modification (MM106) proposes to substitute the revised trajectory for that in the LP. This is necessary to ensure that it is consistent with all the other modifications relating to sites. The amended trajectory is based on evidence as at September 2015. It has been suggested in representations on the main modifications that it should be revised further in the light of events that have occurred since this date, particularly where some sites are not being developed at the anticipated rate. However, the trajectory s inevitably based on information at a particular point in time. It is more important that the Council monitors development against the trajectory (and the 5-year land supply requirement) in a comprehensive way having regard to progress on all sites”. 2.13. This paragraph is instructive, it acknowledges the fact that a trajectory is a snapshot in time based on information available at that time. What is important is the monitoring of the performance of the Council over the timeframe of the Local Plan. The Inspector acknowledges that some sites had not been developed at the anticipated rate, but regards this as something that should be considered in a comprehensive way when assessing the delivery performance through the regular annual monitoring procedures over the Plan period. 2.14. The Inspector’s Report considered the September 2015 trajectory to be robust. He considered that there needed to be a main modification (i.e. the Plan was unsound without the revised trajectory). The Inspector therefore appears to have been content with the trajectory and the levels of delivery which it assumes. 2.15. There are a number of instances round the country where appellants have sought to challenge a Council’s five year land supply within a relatively short timeframe post adoption of a new Plan. In instances such as this the evidential burden on appellants to counter the findings of a local plan Inspector is significant. 6 “It is a material consideration of significant weight that some 9 months ago, following a full and proper examination, my colleague Inspector made findings about individual sites and about the overall supply.