planning report D&P/1825d/01 27 June 2016 The Arena, Bennetsfield Road, Stockley Park, UB11 1AA in the London Borough of Hillingdon planning application no. 37800/APP/2016/1430 Strategic planning application stage 1 referral Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended); Greater London Authority Acts 1999 and 2007; Town & Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008. The proposal Erection of 81 room hotel (Use Class C1) with ancillary bar/café and associated ancillary works including extension and reconfiguration of car park and landscaping. The applicant The applicant is BBC Pension Trust Ltd, the architect is Urban Edge and the agent is Smith Jenkins Ltd. Strategic issues summary Principle of development: The site is on the Green Belt in an international business park, which falls within the Heathrow Opportunity Area. The development comprises the redevelopment of previously developed land in the Green Belt and is therefore considered to be appropriate development in accordance with the NPPF. The development of a hotel on the site will complement and enhance the competitiveness of the business park and by extension that of London as an international city whilst providing full-time and part-time employment and structured training in line with London Plan policies and is strongly supported (paragraphs 16- 35). Transport: Further discussion, clarification and/or commitments with respect to car, cycle and coach parking are required (paragraphs 43-48). Recommendation That Hillingdon Council be advised that while the application is generally acceptable in strategic planning terms, the application does not comply fully with the London Plan, for the reasons set out in paragraph 71 of this report; but that the possible remedies also set out in paragraph 71 of this report could address those deficiencies. page 1 Context 1 On 16 May 2016 the Mayor of London received documents from Hillingdon 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 27 June 2016 to provide the Council with a statement setting out whether 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 3D of the Schedule to the Order 2008: “Development (a) on land allocated as Green Belt or Metropolitan Open Land in the development plan, in proposals for such a plan, or in proposals for the alteration or replacement of such a plan; and (b) which would involve the construction of a building with a floorspace of more than 1,000 square metres or a material change in the use of such a building.” 3 Once Hillingdon 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 Mayor of London’s statement on this case will be made available on the GLA website www.london.gov.uk. Site description 5 The site, formally known as The Arena, is situated within Stockley Park, West Drayton, and forms part of an international business park built during the 1980s. The business park is bounded by Stockley Road to the west, Stockley Pines Golf Course to the North, Dawley Road to the east, and the Grand Union Canal to the south. It falls within the Heathrow Opportunity Area and is designated as a Key Sub-Area in the Hillingdon Local Plan: Part 1 - Strategic Policies. The site is also located within the Green Belt. 6 The northern boundary of the application site is defined in part by the sloped landscape and existing tree line which forms part of the Stockley Park Golf Club and to the south there is a man-made lake which forms part of the existing Arena drainage strategy. The entire site’s topography slopes from north to south towards the lake. 7 The Arena serves as the leisure and amenity hub for the Business Park and the existing building is currently occupied by a health club, a wide variety of retail and restaurant units, a public house, and offices. The Arena building is locally listed, but does not form part of a Conservation Area. 8 Vehicular access to the site is via a private road off the public highway to the east of the A408 Stockley Road/Horton Road roundabout. Stockley Road leads to the M4, located 1.6 kilometres to the south. The public transport access level (PTAL) of the site is poor and estimated at 2 (on a scale where 1a is the lowest and 6b the highest). Three bus routes (U5, 350 & A10 “Heathrow Fast” service) serve the site from a stop on Stockley Park, Roundwood Road, located within 200m of the site. These bus routes operate at an average frequency of 4.6 buses per hour. 9 There are no London Underground stations within walking distance of the site and the nearest rail station is West Drayton, located approximately two kilometres west, and provides services between Oxford and London Paddington route. page 2 10 The nearest section of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN) is the Hayes Bypass/A312, located approximately 2.9km to the east of the site. The nearest section of the Strategic Road Network (SRN) is Uxbridge Road/A4020, located approximately 1.8km to the north-east. With regard to cycling, a QuietWay Phase 2 Route is planned to run 700 further north from the site. Details of the proposal 11 The applicant is seeking full planning permission for the construction of an 81-bedroom hotel (bar/restaurant included) with a total GIA floor area of approximately 2490 sq.m. over three levels. The hotel will be built partly above existing ground floor uses and partly over sailing the surface level car park, and will be operated by Travelodge. Case history 12 An application (reference number PDU/1825b/01) to provide an additional 2,305 sq.m. of office accommodation at Stockley Arena was referred to the Mayor in April 2013 for consideration. This application was supported by the Mayor on 28 August 2013 and granted permission by Hillingdon Council on 29 August 2013. Strategic planning issues and relevant policies and guidance 13 The relevant issues and corresponding policies are as follows: Green Belt London Plan; Hotel London Plan; Employment London Plan; Urban design London Plan; Access London Plan; Accessible London: achieving an inclusive environment SPG; Sustainable development London Plan; Sustainable Design and Construction SPG; Mayor’s Climate Change Adaptation Strategy; Mayor’s Climate Change Mitigation and Energy Strategy; Mayor’s Water Strategy; Transport London Plan; the Mayor’s Transport Strategy; MALP Transport; 14 For the purposes of Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, the development plans in force for the area are the 2012 Hillingdon Local Plan: Part 1 - Strategic Policies, Saved policies of the Unitary Development Plan (2007), and The London Plan 2016 (The Spatial Development Strategy for London Consolidated with Alterations since 2011). 15 The following are also relevant material considerations: The National Planning Policy Framework and Technical Guide to the National Planning Policy Framework. Hillingdon Council’s Local Plan Part 2 (Revised Proposed Submission Version, October 2015), which comprises Development Management Policies, Site Allocations and Policies Map, are also relevant material considerations. page 3 Principle of development: Development of hotel on Green Belt 16 The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) defines previously developed land (PDL) as: “Land which is or was occupied by a permanent structure, including the curtilage of the developed land (although it should not be assumed that the whole of the curtilage should be developed) and any associated fixed surface infrastructure. This excludes: land that is or has been occupied by agricultural or forestry buildings; land that has been developed for minerals extraction or waste disposal by landfill purposes where provision for restoration has been made through development control procedures; land in built-up areas such as private residential gardens, parks, recreation grounds and allotments; and land that was previously-developed but where the remains of the permanent structure or fixed surface structure have blended into the landscape in the process of time.” 17 As the proposed hotel will be built partly above existing ground floor uses and partly oversailing the surface level car park within the curtilage of the “The Arena” site, it is considered to be previously developed site. 18 London Plan Policy 7.16 ‘Green Belt’ notes that “the strongest protection should be given to London’s Green Belt, in accordance with national guidance. Inappropriate development should be refused, except in very special circumstances. Development will be supported if it is appropriate and helps secure the objectives of improving the Green Belt as set out in national guidance.” 19 The national guidance referred to above is articulated in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) at paragraphs 88-92, which makes it clear that, with few exceptions, the construction of new buildings in the Green Belt should be regarded as inappropriate development. The NPPF further advises local authorities that when considering any planning application, they should ensure that substantial weight is given to any harm to the Green Belt and ‘very special circumstances’ will not exist unless the potential harm to the Green Belt by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations.