PLANNING AND REGULATORY COMMITTEE 11 November 2014 REPORT OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE PLANNING APPLICATIONS FOR DETERMINATION Item 1: 07/14/0680/F Location: 24-26 Cuffley Hill, Goffs Oak, Herts, EN7 5EU Description: Change of use of 26 from A1/B1 use to 2 no. two bed flats and conversion of 24 to 2 no. two bed flats with landscaping, parking and erection of porches to the front elevation. Applicant: MCK Agent: Plan Preparation Services Ltd Date Received: 30/07/2014 Date of Committee: 11.11.2014 Expiry Date: 24/09/2014 Officer Contact: Peter Quaile RECOMMENDED that: permission be granted subject to the conditions at the end of this report and the applicant first completing a planning obligation under s.106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) for the terms set out in this report. 1. CONSULTATIONS 1.1 HCC Highways – No objection subject to conditions 2. PUBLICITY 2.1 The application has been advertised by means of a site notice and letters to occupiers of neighbouring properties: expiry of consultation period 28th August 2014. A1 3. REPRESENTATIONS 3.1 15 representations objecting to this proposal have been received from neighbours to the site. A summary of objections is as follows: Overlooking and consequent loss of amenity and privacy at existing houses adjoining the site The scheme will lack parking spaces in an area which already suffers from significant resident parking stress. There will be more noise and fumes from cars in the rear of the property due to the manoeuvring to park The use of the rear area will make the area less secure This is not the correct location for social housing Details of lighting are not shown There will be increased hazard on Cuffley Hill There needs to be enhanced drainage for the parking area 4. RELEVANT LOCAL PLAN POLICIES 4.1 The following policies of the Borough of Broxbourne Local Plan Second Review 2001- 2011 (adopted December 2005) apply: SUS1 Sustainable Development Principles H2 Maximising the Development Potential from Sites EMP6 Local Employment Sites H8 Design Quality of Development HD13 Design Principles HD17 Retention /Enhancement of Landscape features T3 Transport and New Development T11 Car Parking 4.2 Under the provisions of the NPPF the Council is required to deliver a wide choice of high quality homes and to provide a mix of housing to meet current and future demographic needs. 5. LOCATION AND DESCRIPTION OF SITE 5.1 The site is located near to Goffs Oak village and is on the north side of Cuffley Hill in a row of semi-detached houses which were built in the middle of the last century. The application properties are more modern but have been heavily extended and modified inside and out. The facades are in red/brown brick with a brown concrete tile roof. There is a large double garage to the rear of no.24 which is reached via a tunnel under the side of the house and there is a single-storey outbuilding in brick with a central link in timber at the rear of the site which extends across both sites which were previously in one ownership and joint use. No. 24 has a lawful use as a single family dwelling. No.26 has a lawful use on the ground floor as a beauty salon and on the upper floor as a Class B1 office. There are no other relevant planning constraints or environmental restrictions to development at this site. There are mature trees to the western boundary and a 3 metre high conifer hedge between the main house and the rear outbuilding. A2 Street frontage A3 5.2 The front area of the site is hard surfaced in tarmac, having been used for car parking for both the residential and commercial uses. 6. RELEVANT PLANNING HISTORY 6.1 Planning permission was granted in 1974 for the double garage. 6.2 Permission was refused in December 2011 for use of part of the ground floor as a taxi office (Reference 07/11/0790/F). 6.3 Permission was granted for continued use of the first floor of 26 for a Class B1 office in November 2013 (Reference 07/13/0807/F) 7. PROPOSAL 7.1 This is a full application to alter and convert both the properties to create a total of 4 no. two bed flats. The works to the building/site entail demolition of the two conservatories and the double garage. At the front there would be canopies erected over the two front entrance doors, the shopfront would be replaced by a domestic window and electric gates would be erected to the void under no.24. To the rear there would be new double doors to the remodelled amenity area and hard surfacing with parking for seven cars. A new bin enclosure to the rear would serve the flats. Proposed Site Layout A4 Proposed Front Elevation 8. APPRAISAL 8.1 The main issues to consider are: (i) The Principle of conversion at this site (ii) Design (iii) Amenity (iv) Highways and Car Parking The Principle of Development at this Site 8.2 The site has a lawful mixed use as a house (no.24) with a beauty salon on the ground floor and an office above (no.26). 8.3 With regard to the house, there is no in principle planning objection to its conversion to provide two flats. A5 8.4 As there is lawful commercial use in no.26, the proposal falls to be assessed in relation to Policy EMP6 which seeks to retain local employment sites outside the designated commercial areas. Policy EMP6 sets out criteria by which to assess applications and states that alternative uses will only be permitted where: . The use causes environmental problems; or . The owner can demonstrate there is no effective demand for the premises; and . There is no reasonable prospect of commercial re-use; or . The current occupier can be re-located to satisfactory premises in the Borough; or . The development provides essential community benefits In the case of this site, the Council previously refused permission for a taxi office on the basis of the likely impact of noise disturbance on neighbours’ amenity. The site was bought on the open market when lying vacant earlier in 2014 so there is no business to relocate – the vacancy would also indicate limited demand for commercial re-use. The previous office occupier of the upper floor only employed two staff as they had a primarily internet based lettings business. There is an ample supply of shop premises in the Borough if a site is needed for a beauty salon and demand for small offices is known to be weak with regular conversions to residential, particularly in town centres. The scheme would provide much needed residential accommodation within the Borough. 8.5 Although the use for residential purposes is not an exact fit with Policy EMP6, the loss of the commercial component of the site is overall considered to be acceptable. 8.6 The principle of development of this site for four flats is considered to be acceptable. Design 8.7 The proposal would involve relatively limited intervention to the appearance of the exterior of the property. The new windows to the frontage would improve its appearance and the small porch canopies would be in keeping with the local townscape. The works to the rear involving removal of two conservatories and insertion of a rear ground floor window are considered to be uncontentious in design terms. Removal of the double garage will open up the rear of the property and improve the outlook for neighbours. The design of the new security gates to the void under no.24 is considered to be acceptable. Overall the changes to the exterior of the buildings are considered to be in compliance with Policy H13. Amenity 8.8 There are two aspects to amenity which relate to this proposal. First, the impact on amenity for neighbours and secondly, the quality of amenity which would be provided for the proposed flats inside and out. A6 8.9 With regard to the impact on neighbours, the main issues relate to potential loss of privacy and potential impact from the additional activity when the site is in use. 8.10 There are no new windows proposed to the flanks and the distance from the rear of the properties to the neighbouring dwellings well exceeds the established SPG standard of 25m. The rear outbuilding is sheltered from overlooking by a tall conifer hedge at the southern part of the garden and by a two metre fence to the north. The distance of the outbuilding from the rear upper floors of the main building ranges from 18.5 metres to 20 metres, but that relationship would be essentially unaltered and it would, to a degree, be a matter of choice for future occupiers if they took up residence. 8.11 In terms of the general impact which would occur, use of the two properties as four conventional flats is considered unlikely to produce noise and disturbance in excess of normal domestic activity. The Council has statutory powers to deal with nuisance. Neighbours have raised concern about traffic noise and fumes from vehicles using the rear car park. In light of these objections, the applicant has revised the scheme to move the proposed spaces which were originally set along the boundary with no.22 but has also increased the number of spaces to meet the Council’s SPG parking standard. The existing situation is that vehicles already access the rear of the site to reach the double garage and would need to manoeuvre to exit the site in a forward gear.