Agenda item

            That planning permission be granted subject to

(i)         the conditions detailed in the report of the Head of Planning;

(ii)        the applicant entering into a Section 106 Obligation, Unilateral Undertaking or advance payment of £1,100 per dwelling in lieu of on site play provision;

(iii)       the imposition of a condition to replace the hedgerow behind the visibility splay;

(iv)       the removal of the permitted development rights for the whole site; and

(v)        the additional highways condition reported in the late observations sheet. 

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Planning in respect of this application which had been the subject of a site visit on 5 November 2012.  The usual consultations had been undertaken and the responses received detailed in the report. Additional comments received since the preparation of the report were circulated at the meeting. 

            The officer detailed the background to the report explaining that all matters were reserved but that an indicative layout had been provided.  The issues on the previous application related to drainage and access.  For this application, the access had been moved down the road to a location outside of the settlement boundary; the officer advised that this was not a concern in planning policy terms.  On the issue of drainage and flooding, Welsh Water had no objections to the application but had requested that a Grampian-style condition be included to prevent occupation of the dwellings until after April 2014 to allow improvements to the capacity of the existing Sewerage Treatment Works to be undertaken. 

            Mrs. S. Naybour spoke against the application on behalf of Wylfa Hill Preservation Society.  She thanked Councillor R.C. Bithell for his interest and guidance on the application.  She referred to a ditch, which ran along the gardens of the neighbouring properties and the existing dwelling at Wylfa House, which provided an essential drain off area; she was concerned that if it were culverted, the situation of flooding would become worse.  Mrs. Naybour spoke of problems in the past with contamination by sewerage and remarked that drainage generally in Mynydd Isa was insufficient.  A paper had been sent to Members from Wylfa Hill Preservation Society to highlight their concerns and to show pictures of the problems which had been experienced.  She referred to page 5 of the document where it was noted that, if the application were approved, the Society would consider the Council to be liable for problems caused by sewerage.  She was relieved that Wylfa House was to be retained as part of this application but was sorry that it was to be divided.

In response, the Principal Solicitor said that the granting of planning permission for the development would not make Flintshire County Council liable for any problems caused by sewerage.  He advised Members to disregard the comment. 

            Councillor M. Jones from Argoed Community Council also spoke against the application.  She said that the areas of Argoed, Mynydd Isa and Bryn-y-Baal had always experienced problems with flooding and added that even though work had been undertaken in the area it had not been done to the necessary standard to prevent flooding in the future.  She said that the drainage system in the area could not cope with the current number of houses and she felt that it needed to be replaced and renewed. 

            Councillor H.J. McGuill, having declared her interest in the application as the applicant, spoke in support of the application.  She referred to paragraph 7.14 of the report and confirmed that only foul water discharges would be permitted to the public combined sewer located within Mold Road along the site frontage, as requested by Welsh Water.  On the issue of flooding, she said that the existing flooding was upstream from her property, which was on the side of a hill, so this application should not create or worsen the problem.  She would close the existing access to create a new access further down the road, but indicated that access into the wooded area of the site would still be required.  Councillor McGuill felt that the house conversion would lead to two more affordable units being created rather than one larger dwelling.  She said that the application for a site across the road from her property had been withdrawn which would mean that there would not be conflict between the access into the two sites.  On the issue of the contaminated stream, she said that this had been caused by residents who had their downstairs toilets and laundry rooms plumbed into the surface water system.  She added that she had no intention of culverting the stream.  Councillor McGuill then left the meeting for the remainder of the discussion. 

            Councillor H.G. Roberts proposed the recommendation for approval which was duly seconded.  He welcomed the decision to retain the original property and the request for a Grampian-style condition to upgrade the works on the sewerage works in Mold.  He also felt that the application gave the opportunity to improve the pavement to a width of 1.8m for the full length of the curtilage of the site. 

            Councillor R.C. Bithell spoke of the concerns which had been raised during consideration of the previous application in September 2011, in particular the impact on the drainage in the area.  He felt that most of the concerns had been dealt with in the new application and the access had been repositioned.  He asked for clarification on the comment by Councillor McGuill that the application on the site across the road had been withdrawn.  He welcomed the fact that Wylfa House was to be retained but still raised concern about whether the application amounted to overdevelopment on the site.  The drainage issue was still a concern and he asked that a condition be imposed that permitted development rights be removed so that the ditch could be protected.  Councillor Bithell also welcomed the request for a Grampian-style condition and asked that a condition be included to survey all of the trees on the site so as to retain as many as possible, not just the tree which the Forestry Officer considered should be retained.  He asked that the hedge be replaced on the edge of the pavement and queried whether this could be conditioned. 

            Councillor M.J. Peers raised concern about what would happen if the planned improvement works to the Waste Water Treatment Works were not completed by 31^st March 2014.  He felt that the application was an improvement on what had initially been put forward but was concerned about the impact on the character of Wylfa House; he asked that the work be undertaken sympathetically.  He concurred that tree preservation orders should be sought for as many trees as possible on the site.  Councillor D. Butler asked why the building had not been designated as a building of local importance.  He felt that it could be turned into four flats and added that, in his opinion, density was still an issue.  He queried the need for a second access which had earlier been requested by Councillor McGuill.  Councillor P.G. Heesom felt that a condition should be included to allow retention of the open aspect of the house and maintenance of the sight lines. 

            In response to the issues raised, the officer confirmed that Welsh Water did not have any objection to the application but were proposing that a Grampian-style condition be included; written confirmation would be required that the work to the treatment works had been undertaken.  On the issue of the culvert, he said that this would be considered by the Environment Agency so he did not feel that it was advisable to include conditions which would replicate their work.  He felt that a condition relating to removal of permitted development rights could be included.  On the issue of the withdrawn application, he explained that the section 106 obligation on that application had not been progressed and the applicant had withdrawn the application.  However, the existing consent remained in place.  The external appearance of Wylfa House could be considered at the reserved matters stage and the wording of a condition on retaining the open aspect of the house could be considered at that time.  The second access referred to by Councillor McGuill was an entrance into the wooded area of the site and was not a second entrance from the highway.  Condition 7 had been included to allow the provision of a tree survey and a condition could also be included to require the planting of a replacement hedge behind the visibility splay. 

            In summing up, Councillor H.G. Roberts agreed with a condition to replace the hedgerow behind the visibility splay and to the removal of the permitted development rights.  Members were also reminded about the additional condition reported in the late observations sheet.          

            RESOLVED:

            That planning permission be granted subject to

(i)         the conditions detailed in the report of the Head of Planning;

(ii)        the applicant entering into a Section 106 Obligation, Unilateral Undertaking or advance payment of £1,100 per dwelling in lieu of on site play provision;

(iii)       the imposition of a condition to replace the hedgerow behind the visibility splay;

(iv)       the removal of the permitted development rights for the whole site; and

(v)        the additional highways condition reported in the late observations sheet.