300 Purley Way,Croydon in the London Borough of Croydon Planning Application No.12/01776/P
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planning report PDU/2909/01 14 August 2012 300 Purley Way,Croydon in the London Borough of Croydon planning application no.12/01776/P Strategic planning application stage 1 referral (new powers) Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended); Greater London Authority Acts 1999 and 2007; Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008 The proposal Outline application for the redevelopment of the site for a 5,425 sq.m.(Class A1 retail) Tesco store with associated car parking, class A3 cafe (17 sq.m.) and 1,732 sq.m. of flexible B1 employment space. With matters relating to appearance, layout and scale to be determined at a later date. Details pertaining to access and landscaping are submitted for determination at stage 1 so are unreserved. The scheme is not proposed to be brought forward until 2020 when John Lewis vacates the site Details facilitating the partial de-culverting of the River Wandle are submitted for determination at this stage. The applicant The applicant is Tesco Supermarkets Ltd and the agent is GL Hearn. Strategic issues The principle of the proposed development and mix of uses; loss of Strategic Industrial Location land and out of centre retail provision. Other issues that need to be addressed before the application is referred back to the mayor at stage two relate to urban design, inclusive access, climate change mitigation and transport. Recommendation That Croydon Council be advised that the application does not comply with the London Plan, for the reasons set out in paragraph 109 of this report; but that the possible remedies set out in paragraph 111 of this report could address these deficiencies. Context 1 On 9 July 2012 the Mayor of London received documents from Croydon Council notifying him of a planning application of potential strategic importance to develop the above site for the above uses. Under the provisions of The Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008 the Mayor has until 15 August 2012 to provide the Council with a statement setting out whether S:\Planning Decisions\Cases\2909\Stage 1 Report page 1 he considers that the application complies with the London Plan, and his reasons for taking that view. The Mayor may also provide other comments. This report sets out information for the Mayor’s use in deciding what decision to make. 2 The application is referable under Category 1B of the Schedule to the Order 2008: Development (other than development which only comprises the provision of houses, flats, or houses and flats) which comprises or includes the erection of a building or buildings— outside Central London and with a total floorspace of more than 15,000 square metres 3 Once Croydon Council has resolved to determine the application, it is required to refer it back to the Mayor for his decision as to whether to direct refusal; take it over for his own determination; or allow the Council to determine it itself. 4 The environmental information for the purposes of the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2011 has been taken into account in the consideration of this case. 5 The Mayor of London’s statement on this case will be made available on the GLA website www.london.gov.uk. Site description 6 The site is located to the west of Purley Way (A23), to the south is the back of a residential terrace on Mill Lane and Waddon Ponds, to the north is Currys and Toys R Us store and to west is an industrial park. The site is presently occupied by a John Lewis at Home Store. The River Wandle flows in culvert to the north and west of the site. 7 The site is located approximately 1.2km south-west of Croydon Town Centre, and is bounded by the A23 Purley Way which forms part of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN) to the east, and by Mill Lane, a borough controlled road, to the south. The site is directly served by two bus routes (289 and 455), with stops located outside the site along Purley Way. A further two bus routes (407 and 410) are also located within an acceptable walking distance on Waddon Road. The site is additionally located 550m east of Wandle Park Tramlink stop on the Wimbledon branch of the network, with Waddon railway station located 725m south of the development. As such it has been demonstrated that the site records a moderate to good Public Transport Accessibility Level (PTAL) of 3-4, on a scale of 1-6 where 6 is the highest. Details of the proposal 8 Outline application for the redevelopment of the site for a 5,425 sq.m.(Class A1 retail) Tesco store with associated car parking, class A3 cafe (17 sq.m.) and 1,732 sq.m. of flexible B1 employment space. With matters relating to appearance, layout and scale to be determined at a later date. Details pertaining to access and landscaping are submitted for determination at stage 1 so are unreserved. The scheme is not proposed to be brought forward until 2020 when John Lewis vacates the site. 9 Details facilitating the partial de-culverting of the River Wandle are submitted for determination at this stage. S:\Planning Decisions\Cases\2909\Stage 1 Report page 2 Case history 10 Permission for the extant use relating to 300 Purley Way was first granted in 1986 (86/02159/P) for the construction of a retail premises for the sale of DIY home improvement, builder merchants’ garden and associated products. 11 In 1995 permission was granted (95/02282/P) for the retention of the retail premises for the sale of DIY home improvement, builder merchants’ garden and associated products (without compliance with condition 3 – use of premises – attached to planning permission 86/02159). As such a greater range of non-food goods, albeit still restricted, were permitted to be sold from the premises. 12 The use of the site has remained largely unchanged since this approval. However, several applications are of relevance including: Environmental Impact Assessment not required for demolition of buildings and construction of mixed use development (03/04125/P) Permission granted for partial demolition and alterations to elevation, division of the building into two retail units (05/02681/P) Permission granted for the erection of a building for use for non-food sales (within Class A1). Erection of two buildings for use within Classes B1(b) and (c) or B2 or B8 and 17 residential units fronting Mill Lane (05/02683/P) Permission granted for the renewal of previous approval 05/02681 to be implemented within 8 years (11/00744/P) Permission granted for the renewal of previous approval 05/02683/P. Reserved matters to be submitted within 3 years and then implemented within a further 5 years (i.e. 8 year permission) (11/01351/P) 4.5 13 The above two planning permissions have not been implemented but remain extant. 14 Prior to submission the application has been subject to two pre-application meeting and a pre-application advice report was issued on 27 April 2012. Strategic planning issues and relevant policies and guidance 15 The relevant issues and corresponding policies are as follows: Retail/town centre uses London Plan; Urban design London Plan; Blue Ribbon Network London Plan; Access London Plan; Accessible London: achieving an inclusive environment SPG; Planning and Access for Disabled People: a good practice guide (ODPM) Climate change London Plan; The Mayor’s Climate Change and Energy Strategy; Mayor’s Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Strategy; Mayor’s Water Strategy; Sustainable Design and Construction SPG Transport London Plan; the Mayor’s Transport Strategy; Parking London Plan; the Mayor’s Transport Strategy; 16 The National Planning Policy Framework (March 2012) is also a material consideration. S:\Planning Decisions\Cases\2909\Stage 1 Report page 3 17 For the purposes of Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, the development plan in force for the area are Croydon Replacement UDP adopted 13th July 2006 and the 2011 London Plan. The following are also relevant material considerations: The National Planning Policy Framework and Technical Guide to the National Planning Policy Framework Croydon Core Strategy Development Plan Document (DPD) – Submission 2 April 2012. The draft Revised Early Minor Alteration to the London Plan The Croydon Opportunity Area Framework (Consultation Draft, July 2012) Principle of development Employment use/SIL designation 18 The development includes some 1,732 sq.m. Class B floorspace comprising two units at ground floor (122 sq.m. and 1,074 sq.m.) and one at first floor (536 sq.m). The extant permission includes 2,604 sq.m. and the proposal represents a reduction in approved floorspace 19 The site forms part of the Purley Way and Beddington Lane Industrial Estate Strategic Industrial location (SIL) under the Preferred Industrial Location (PIL) category identified in Annex 3 of the London Plan. London Plan Policy 2.17 Strategic Industrial Locations describes those locations as “London’s main reservoirs of industrial and related capacity, including logistics, waste management, utilities, wholesale markets and some transport functions”. Under section B planning decisions the policy states development proposals in SILs should be refused unless: a. "They fall within the broad industrial type activities outlined in paragraph 2.79 which states in relation to PIL: which are particularly suitable for general industrial, light industrial, storage and distribution, waste management, recycling, some transport related functions, utilities, wholesale markets and other industrial related activities. b. They are part of a strategically co-ordinated process of SIL consolidation through an OAPF or borough development plan document. c. The proposal is for employment workspace to meet identified needs for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) or new emerging industrial sectors; or d.