2 Downs Road Istead Rise Gravesend Kent DA13 9HE Application
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SUMMARY REPORT Application Ref: 20160635 Site Address: 2 Downs Road Istead Rise Gravesend Kent DA13 9HE Application Continued shared use of existing building as farm office and Description: staff rest area for Willerby Farm and as offices and rest area for Highway Recovery Services Limited with associated staff facilities including retention of overnight accommodation provision and temporary storage of recovered vehicles in association with Highway Recovery Services Limited. Applicant: Mr W Elliot Agent: Mrs Jane Scott, Hobbs Parker Property Ward: Istead Rise Parish: Non-Parish Area Decision due date: 16 August 2016 Publicity expiry date: 19 August 2016 Decision level: Planning Regulatory Board - 07 September 2016 Reasons for referral: Request of Cllr John Knight due to concerns of local impact and intensification of use Recommendation: Deferred for additional information and subsequent assessment Summary of Reasons for Recommendation A planning application (20130967) for the use of an agricultural building at Willerby Farm for part agricultural use and part use by a vehicle recovery firm was granted planning permission on a temporary basis in February 2014 following a report to the Board at its meeting on 15 January 2014, a Member Site Inspection which was held on 25 January 2014 and subsequent report back to the Board meeting on 12 February 2014. The planning permission runs for three years expiring on 28 February 2017 and was therefore intended to allow review of the operation and its local impact during the temporary permission. The site is within the Green Belt and on the edge of the village of Istead Rise. The current proposal is in this case for a permanent permission and is also seeking variations to the terms of the temporary permission. Although effectively the temporary planning permission has still some six months to run the applicants have submitted for an earlier determination as a result of current breaches of conditions relating to the number of vehicles being kept on the site, being an increase in the number of recovery vehicles from 3 to 5 vehicles and the length of period that vehicles may be stored, being longer than overnight. The issues to consider in the determination of the application are: • whether the use of the building and site, on a permanent basis, accords with adopted development plan policy; • whether the continued use would harm the character and appearance of the area, particularly having regard to the more recent intensification, both in the numbers of vehicles associated with the use and the length of storage; • whether the development would result in harm to local amenity by reason of noise and disturbance; and • whether there would be any harm to traffic safety An analysis of the current proposal in relation to adopted planning policy and national planning advice as well as consideration of the local representations in response to the proposal would suggest that the development as now proposed and seemingly a more intensified form of operation (albeit that this appears to already be happening) would not be in conformity with established planning policies particularly in relation to the location of the site being within the Green Belt. Notwithstanding that there is a clear identified conflict with adopted planning policy and notably the impact on the openness of the Green Belt nevertheless the Borough Council has previously granted a temporary planning permission in order to allow review of the operation and its local impact during the temporary period which would suggest that the Council saw some merit in the operation of the business in this location and no doubt as a suitable reuse of a farm building as a way of supporting the rural economy and this is a material consideration. It is likely that at that time it was considered that the operation would be reasonably low key but the concerns emanating from the intensification and non-conformity with the planning conditions imposed and taking into account the objections received from local residents are whether it is possible to maintain a low key operation but recognising the business needs of the operation that does not materially impact on local amenity, does not harm the character and appearance of the semi-rural location and does not harm the openness of the Green Belt. On balance and in weighing all the conflicting issues it is recommend that a decision be DEFERRED and that additional information is essential before a final decision can be made. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MAIN REPORT 1. Site Description and Surroundings 1.1 Willerby Farm is located on the south western side of Downs Road in Istead Rise. The farm is an active arable unit apparently in excess of 128 hectares (316 acres). 1.2 The Farmyard includes a number of detached farm buildings as well as a detached two storey farmhouse which fronts on to Downs Road. The yard is accessed by a gated access and part tarmac road which slopes upwards towards the farm buildings from Downs Road. There is a separate access that also serves the building and yard similarly gated that runs along the north-west side of the farmhouse which links with the main farm access road at some 40m from the junction on to Downs Road. 1.3 The specific site to which this particular application relates comprises a single storey brick building under a tiled shallow pitch roof measuring 13m by 6.7m as well as a surfaced yard area immediately north east of the building and grassed areas either side of the hard surfaced yard area. The building has the outward appearance of a bungalow. The building is located approx. 140 metres from the junction of the farm access road with Downs Road. 1.4 This single storey building was granted planning permission in 1991 under the Council’s reference GR/91/0448 subject to planning conditions which restricted its use solely to an office, canteen/restroom and amenity building ancillary to the farm and not to be used either temporarily or permanently for living accommodation. Internally the building comprises a main office with associated comfy seating and T.V; kitchen (described as canteen/break area); bathroom with toilet and shower facilities; rest area comprising bed for occasional use; and further toilet/shower facilities with external access only. 1.5 The office and associated facilities are apparently currently shared between the applicant, Mr Elliot, who is the farmer and landowner and by Mr Anderson of Highways Recovery Services Limited, a vehicle recovery business. Mr Anderson has, as a result of a temporary planning permission (20130967) granted by this Council in 2014, parked three vehicles belonging to his business at the site, there being two towing vehicles and a van, on an existing hard standing area in front of the office/restroom building under the terms of the planning conditions, as well as storing recovered vehicles (an unspecified number) for overnight recovery. The number of vehicles associated with the business has more recently increased and the storage of recovered vehicles extending beyond overnight storage (and this is referred to elsewhere in this report) and it was also noted following a recent site inspection that a shipping container has been located on the site for use for storage of barrels of mixed fuel. 1.6 The office building sits behind an existing large agricultural barn and is partly screened from adjoining residential properties (principally two storey semi- detached dwellings) in Longwalk, a short cul-de-sac off Downs Road, by existing vegetation to the boundary. 1.7 Highways Recovery Services Limited (HRS) operate a 24/7 vehicle breakdown, recovery and rescue service for cars, motorbikes and light vans (up to 3.5 ton) including misfuel assistance and light mechanical repairs. The proprietor of the business, Mr Anderson, resides in an adjoining dwelling in Longwalk (no 16), the rear garden of which is adjacent to the current parking and storage area of the business and the office element of the business used to be run within his own residential property with rescue and breakdown trucks parked in and around Longwalk. 1.8 The other agricultural buildings on the site include: A workshop of brick construction measuring approx. 12m by 12m with additions on the north and west sides; A small but fairly tall 9m by 6m metal grain store with a brick lean to extension on the north side; An 18m by 24m brick and corrugated metal machinery store with retaining wall on the south side; and A more modern storage building for machinery 20m by 12.5m dating from a prior approval in 2005, and located to the south of the office building; a metal silo is located at the rear of this building. 1.9 The application site (including the farmhouse and all the other agricultural buildings at this holding) is within a Green Belt area just outside of the rural settlement/village boundary for Istead Rise which is inset from the Green Belt. 1.10 Downs Road is a classified highway and a local distributor route linking New Barn Road to the west with the A227 Wrotham Road to the east. 2. Planning History 2.1 Historical maps show that the application site was open farmland until the early 1960’s probably in use as an orchard. 2.2 A planning history search has revealed the following planning records in chronological order: 19900870: Section 64 application as to whether planning permission is required for erection of detached single storey building to form offices, toilets, canteen/restroom. Application Refused 25.03.1991 19910448: Erection of single storey detached building to form offices canteen/restroom, drying room and toilet accommodation. Permitted 30.09.1991 20050328: Determination as to whether prior approval is required for the erection of a machinery store building.