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HARROGATE BOROUGH COUNCIL PLANNING COMMITTEE – AGENDA ITEM 6: LIST OF PLANS. DATE: 22 December 2009 PLAN: 04 CASE NUMBER: 09/04228/FUL GRID REF: EAST 447491 NORTH 447032 APPLICATION NO. 6.150.66.C.FUL DATE MADE VALID: 05.11.2009 TARGET DATE: 31.12.2009 CASE OFFICER: Mr Graham Brookfield WARD: Marston Moor VIEW PLANS AT: http://tinyurl.com/ydjrb8j APPLICANT: O A Watson & Son AGENT: Savills PROPOSAL: Siting of 8 holiday lets, formation of access track and landscaping (Site Area 0.69 ha). LOCATION: Manor House Farm The Avenue Wighill Park Tadcaster North Yorkshire LS24 8BT REPORT SITE AND PROPOSAL The site is situated within Wighill Farm which is an arable and sheep farm on the edge of Wighill village. The site is a field to the west of the existing farm buildings which contains a large pond. Wighill Hill Manor, which is a Grade II Listed Building, is situated to the south east of the site. The field is used for grazing sheep. The farm also caters for caravans all year round with 5 caravans licensed under the Camping and Caravanning Club. These caravans are sited on the field which is the subject of this application. The farm also holds annual caravan rallies. The applicant has indicated that the field is 2.88 ha in size and the site 0.68 ha. The proposal seeks consent for 8 timber lodges which would be targeted towards the luxury end of the tourism market. The lodges will conform to the statutory and legal definition of a mobile home and will be sited on either concrete raft foundations or where ground conditions permit on concrete strip foundations. The proposal seeks to diversify the existing farm business so as to provide an additional income stream for the farm. This would secure the jobs of existing farm employees and provide a livelihood for other members of the family to enter the farm business. MAIN ISSUES 1. Policy/Principle 2. Impact on the Landscape 3. Impact on the setting of the Listed Building 4. Residential amenity 5. Highways RELEVANT SITE HISTORY None. CONSULTATIONS/NOTIFICATIONS Parish Council WIGHILL DCS Arboricultural Officer No objection. No trees would be harmed by the proposals and new tree planting is proposed. Landscape Officer Comments awaited. North Wharfe Internal Drainage Board Details of how surface water and foul water will be managed. Conditions recommended. Local Plans Policy See assessment of main issues. Yorkshire Water Water supply can be provided. Should be referred to Environment Agency and Local Authority's Environmental Health Section for comment on private treatment facilities. NYCC Highway Authority No objections. H.B.C Land Drainage No objections. Environment Agency No comments received at time of writing report. EHO Contaminated Land Contamination is highly unlikely to have affected the site, further investigation of the site is unnecessary. RELEVANT PLANNING POLICY PPS1 Planning Policy Statement 1: Delivering Sustainable Development CSSG2 Core Strategy Policy SG2 Settlement Growth: Hierarchy and limits PPS06 Planning Policy Statement 6, Planning for Town Centres PPS07 Planning Policy Statement 7, Sustainable Development in Rural Areas PPG15 Planning Policy Guidance 15, Planning and the Historic Environment GPGPFT Good Practice Guide on Planning for Tourism RSE6 The Yorkshire and Humber Plan Policy RSSE6, Sustainable Tourism RSE7 The Yorkshire and Humber Plan Policy RSSE7, Rural Economy CSJB1 Core Strategy Policy JB1: Supporting the Harrogate District economy CSSG3 Core Strategy Policy SG3 Settlement Growth: Conservation of the countryside, including Green Belt CSSG4 Core Strategy Policy SG4 Settlement Growth: Design and Impact LPTR04 Harrogate District Local Plan (2001, as altered 2004) Policy TR4, Camping and Caravan Development - Site Characteristics LPHD20 Harrogate District Local Plan (2001, as altered 2004) Policy HD20, Design of New Development and Redevelopment CSEQ1 Core Strategy Policy EQ1: Reducing risks to the environment APPLICATION PUBLICITY SITE NOTICE EXPIRY: 18.12.2009 PRESS NOTICE EXPIRY: REPRESENTATIONS WIGHILL PARISH COUNCIL - No comments received at time of writing report. No other third party representations have been received at time of writing report. Any received prior to Committee will be reported to Members. VOLUNTARY NEIGHBOUR NOTIFICATION - None ASSESSMENT OF MAIN ISSUES 1. POLICY/PRINCIPLE - In order to promote a sustainable pattern of rural development in those areas of the countryside outside the Green Belt, Policy SG3 of the Core Strategy supports sustainable rural enterprises, including tourism and farm diversification. Policy JB1 of the Core Strategy supports the development of sustainable holiday tourism throughout the District and its enhancement as a year round activity. Policy JB1 also supports the rural and agricultural economy and its diversification. Policy E6 of the Regional Spatial Strategy promotes development of sustainable tourism in the region. Policy E7 of the Regional Spatial Strategy provides guidance on the rural economy and lends support for rural diversification schemes which bring 'economic, social and environmental benefit'. PPS7 requires that Local Planning Authorities be supportive of well-conceived farm diversification schemes for business purposes that contribute to sustainable development objectives and help to sustain the agricultural enterprise, and are consistent in their scale with their rural location. In respect of holiday chalet developments in rural areas PPS7 requires that Local Authorities carefully weigh the objective of providing adequate facilities and sites with the need to protect landscapes and environmentally sensitive sites. Local planning authorities should support the provision of other forms of self-catering holiday accommodation in rural areas where this would accord with sustainable development objectives. Policy TR4 of the Local Plan states that proposals for all caravan, holiday chalets and camping development will be considered against a number of criteria. In respect of access to informal recreation opportunities the proposal, is in an area with opportunities for walking and cycling. The proposal will have limited access to local services. While the site is adjacent to the settlement of Wighill this site is not identified as a sustainable settlement by Policy SG2 of the Core Strategy. Wighill does however contain a public house and has a limited local bus service. The site is however well placed for other large settlements, with Wetherby and Tadcaster being close by. However realistically access to these settlements would be by car due to the very limited local bus service. For the reasons detailed below the development is not considered to have an adverse impact on visual or residential amenity or the character of the countryside. Subject to conditions, the chalets would be sympathetic to the environment in terms of their design, materials and colour. The Governments 'Good Practice Guide on Planning for Tourism' states that the provision of essential facilities for visitors is vital for the development of tourism in rural areas and that tourism can be a key element in rural and farm diversification, and support important rural services and facilities In principle the location is considered to be appropriate for the level and type of development proposed. While market towns and villages should be the main focus for tourism activities, as indicated by PPG6: 'Planning for Town Centres', this proposal is catering for a very specific market, those wanting a tranquil rural setting. Due to the scale of the proposal then it would not threaten the viability of nearby service Centres. It could be seen to support the existing limited local services, including the reopened Public House. The scheme can be considered to represent farm diversification and would support local tourism. As such in principle the proposal has Policy support subject to site specific issues. In respect of the requirements of Policy EQ1 of the Core Strategy the applicant has indicated that the proposal would not accord with the requirements of this Policy as the lodges are pre-manufactured buildings which comply with the standards for mobile homes. The will be built to BS:3632 which is the British Standard for Residential Park Homes. PPS7 requires that the quality of the agricultural land be taken into account alongside other sustainability considerations when determining planning applications. Little weight in agricultural terms should be given to the loss of agricultural land in grades 3b, 4 and 5. The applicant confirms in their supporting information that the land is Grade 4 agricultural land. In addition only part of the field will be used with the rest remaining as grazing land. 2. IMPACT ON THE LANDSCAPE - Policies SG4 of the Core Strategy and HD20 of the Local Plan of the Local Plan require that development makes a positive contribution to the spatial qualities of an area. In relation to proposed holiday chalets, Criteria 4 of Policy TR4 of the Local Plan requires that sites should not have an adverse effect on the visual amenity of the area or the character of the countryside. The applicant has submitted a landscape and visual assessment. This states that the rising landform to the south will screen views from the south and south west, the existing hedgerow and tree planting along the northern boundary will partially screen views from the north and further scattered planting provides additional screening i.e. at Walton Wood, The Wilderness and along the Avenue. Wighill village and roadside planting along Wighill Lane form a screen from viewpoints from the east. The lodges are single storey in height and have been arranged in an unregimented layout so that they would fit with the informal farmyard environment. Efforts appear to have been made to construct a development that is respectful of the landscape setting and designed to be of a reasonably low impact and of modest scale. The Landscape Assessment shows there to be limited views of the site from surrounding view points. While the development may be glimpsed from outside the site, particularly in winter when many of the trees would have lost their leaves, these views would generally be long distance views.