Site of the Former Oakwood High School Darley Avenue Chorlton
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Manchester City Council Item 7 Planning and Highways Committee 13 February 2014 Application Number Date of Appln Committee Date Ward 104437/FO/2013/S1 17th Dec 2013 13 Feb 2014 Chorlton Park Ward Proposal Erection of 97, two-storey, two, three and four-bed houses with car parking, landscaping and boundary treatment works and including an electricity substation. Location Site Of The Former Oakwood High School (lower), Darley Avenue, Chorlton Cum Hardy, Manchester Applicant Mr Ian Sharrocks, Wates Living Space NW, The Royals, 4th Floor 353 Altrincham Road, Sharston, Manchester, M22 4BJ Agent Mr Graeme Mill, Pozzoni LLP, Woodville House, 2 Woodville Road, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 2FH Description This application relates to a roughly rectangular site of 2.55 hectares, bounded by Darley Avenue, Thorneycroft Avenue, the Chorlton-cum-Hardy Golf Club and Barlow Moor Primary School. The site was formerly occupied by the Oakwood High Lower School, which has been demolished, and the site is now largely clear with trees around the boundaries. Manchester City Council Item 7 Planning and Highways Committee 13 February 2014 Consent is sought for the redevelopment of the site with 97 family houses, each with an in-curtilage parking space and front and rear gardens. The proposals involve two new access roads on to Darley Avenue and also include an electricity substation. Consultations Local Residents/Businesses - six letters of objection have been received with a total of eleven signatories. The concerns are summarised below: • Traffic, parking and noise during construction • Increased traffic and parking problems associated with the development • There are already issues on Darley Avenue, which is used as a rat-run and is not very wide. • The proposal involves too many houses for the site. • The proposal provides no commercial premises, no amenities/services/leisure or play spaces • There is little detail of energy efficiency • There are too many additional accesses to Darley Avenue • There would be loss of privacy, loss of light and overlooking of existing properties • The development would result in the loss of views and visual amenity Manchester City Council Item 7 Planning and Highways Committee 13 February 2014 • The proposal would result in the loss of open space • Three would be noise problems associated with increased density • There would be an adverse impact on wildlife • Rented properties have a higher potential to fall into disrepair • The properties have the potential to become HMOs • The pricing structure will be out of reach of those really in need • Old properties should be refurbished before new build schemes are considered • There is a shortage of school places in ‘Manchester and no provision for additional demand from this development • There is a lack of open space in the area • There is a covenant on the land stating it should be used for educational purposes only Member of Parliament - John Leech MP has made comments suggesting a five year management plan for new tree planting, requesting a 20 mph speed limit, a cycle path and car parking on a basis of 2 spaces per house. West Didsbury Residents’ Association - is broadly supportive of the proposal to redevelop the school site for housing. The design and mix and intended tenure arrangement appear to promote a broad social mix of family units which they find acceptable. They do have reservations about the proximity of the units to Barlow Wood and would like to see a buffer zone between the trees and houses. They regret the loss of all the trees on the site Highways Services - have raised a number of points of detail which should be covered within the S278 and S38 agreements. Traffic calming measures have also been requested along with further details in relation to the Travel Plan. Environmental Health - recommend the standard condition relating to the storage and disposal of waste. Arboricultural Officer - has commented that there are four trees in particular of high quality, but their retention would involve a redesign of the layout. However, once the development takes place these would not be visible from outside the site and therefore there amenity value would be greatly reduced. MCC Flood Risk Management Team have requested further details of relation to surface water flooding and soak-aways. Environment Agency - has no objection in principle to the proposed development and requests conditions relating to details of the surface water drainage scheme, and any contamination. Greater Manchester Police - Any comments will be reported to Committee The Crime Impact Assessment submitted states that the proposal is generally acceptable. Manchester City Council Item 7 Planning and Highways Committee 13 February 2014 Greater Manchester Ecology Unit - has no fundamental objection to the application on nature conservation grounds subject to further surveys for Great Crested Newts and any further mitigation measures as set out in the Great Crested Newt FCS Assessment doc ref 4150.00. It is considered that there will be no significant long- term harm caused to the favourable conservation status of Great Crested Newts by the development even if they are in fact present in the area. This is because: • Nearby potential breeding pools are sub-optimal for the species and therefore any population, if present, is likely to be low. • There are no records for the species within 500m of the application site. • No potential breeding pools will be lost to the development. • The small area of potential terrestrial habitat for newts that will be lost to the scheme is not significant when taking into account the large area of nearby suitable habitat in the Mersey Valley. • Suitable precautions to avoid any possible harm to newts, if present, are available and the applicant has given undertakings that such measures can and will be implemented if necessary. Nevertheless the development does have some potential to cause short-term harm to newts during any construction period should they be present. Precautions to avoid such harm would likely include the erection of amphibian exclusion fencing during the construction period and the erection of such fencing would require a European protected species Licence to be obtained from Natural England before proceeding. To obtain a Licence full survey information must be available to Natural England. The ‘three’ tests of the EU Habitats Regulations should also be considered during the determination of the application. Badgers Records for badger occur over 500m from the site. The habitat within the site is considered to have a low potential for badger, however a mammal hole, the shape and size for badger, was found adjacent to the site. It is therefore recommended that this hole be monitored over a four week period to determine the presence/absence of badger. Badgers and their setts are protected under the Badger Protection Act 1992, this protects both the animal from injury, cruel treatment or killing, it also protects setts from deliberate damage whilst occupied. If badgers are found to be using the hole, then prior to commencement of any works on site a method statement outlining protection measures for badgers should be submitted to and agreed by the council. Such measures should then be implemented as agreed. It is recommended that a condition to this effect be placed on any permission, if granted. Birds The trees and scrub on the site offer potential bird nesting habitat. All birds, with the exception of certain pest species, and their nests are protected under the terms of the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981 as amended). It is therefore recommended that works to trees and scrub removal should not be undertaken in the main bird breeding season (March to July inclusive). It is suggested that a condition to this effect be placed on any permission, if granted, in order to protect wild birds. Manchester City Council Item 7 Planning and Highways Committee 13 February 2014 Trees The trees within the site also represent potential foraging and commuting habitat for bats. GMEU recommends that trees are retained within the final landscape or are compensated for through replacement planting. Replacement planting using species of local provenance should be incorporated into any new planting scheme. Any trees to be retained in the development should be protected from works by way of temporary fencing to prevent encroachment by machinery or storage of materials within the root protection zone. GMEU suggests conditions to this effect be placed on any permission. Contaminated Land Section - Recommends the standard condition relating to site investigation, mitigation and remediation be attached to any approval. Issues National Planning Policy Framework The new National Planning Policy Framework replaced previous guidance in PPGs and PPSs, setting out the Government's planning policies and how they are expected to be applied. The NPPF underlines that applications for planning permission must be determined in accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise, and that the Framework is a material consideration in planning decisions. The core message in the document is that in assessing and determining development proposals, local planning authorities should apply the presumption in favour of sustainable development. Policy 6 : Delivering a wide choice of high quality homes - This guidance refers to the delivery of policies that will result in significant increases to the supply of housing. It specifically states that housing applications should be considered in the context of the presumption in favour of sustainable development. Local planning authorities should, subject to a range of specified criteria, seek to deliver a wide choice of high quality homes, widen opportunities for home ownership and create sustainable, inclusive and mixed communities. Policy 7 : Requiring good design - This guidance emphasises the importance of design to the built environment and its contribution to sustainable development and making places better for people and creating attractive, safe and accessible environments.