Agenda item

            The Committee was presented with the details of the application.

The Senior Planning officer advised that the site was undesignated whiteland within the BUAP and dBMAP.  He outlined the key issues which had been considered during the assessment, which included the principle of residential use at the location; scale, massing and design/ impact on character of the area; access and parking; amenity space provision and landscaping; impact on residential amenity; impact on existing trees and proposed landscaping; natural environment; contaminated land; flooding, drainage and sewage infrastructure.

He advised the Committee that the principle of residential development at the location was acceptable given the previous use and surrounding context and that it was considered that the proposed development was generally respectful of the context and character of the locality.  Furthermore, it was considered that the pattern of development was generally in keeping with the overall character and environmental quality of the established residential area. He explained that, while the proposed development represented a higher density than that typically found in the surrounding area, it was adjacent to and would replace an existing higher density development.

The Members were advised that adequate provision had been made for private and public open space within the development, in accordance with Creating Places. The proposal included the removal of 14 trees and a group of scrub vegetation and, following consultation with the Tree and Landscaping officer, it was considered that the proposed landscaping helped to soften the visual impact of the proposed development and assisted in its integration with the surrounding area.

The Senior Planning officer reported that the development included 31 in curtilage parking spaces and DFI Roads had no objection subject to conditions.

He outlined that, following consultation with the relevant bodies, there were no concerns raised in relation to flooding, drainage, sewage, contamination or ecology, subject to appropriate conditions.

            The Chairperson welcomed Ms. R. Nicholl, agent, to the meeting.  She advised the Members that:

·        the site was not located within an Area of Townscape Character;

·        it comprised underutilised brownfield land which had lain vacant for many years. It was currently occupied by three 1960s apartment blocks which had become an eyesore and, over recent years, had attracted anti-social behaviour;

·        the scheme had been significantly reduced and re-designed since the initial proposal of 40 apartments submitted to Council in September 2019;

·        10 letters of objection and 6 letters of support had been received from different households and, since the reduced and amended final proposal was submitted in August, there had only been 1 objection and 1 letter of support from a previous objector to the scheme;

·        in respect of drainage, DfI Rivers had no objection;

·        in respect of trees and landscaping, it was proposed that all soft landscaping would be managed and maintained by a Management Company following construction of the scheme. The Council’s Tree and Landscape Team had no objection;

·        in respect of parking, 31 in curtilage car parking spaces would be provided, which equated to 1 per apartment plus two additional visitor spaces within the site.  There were a further 55 on-street parking spaces along Clonaver Drive and DFI Roads had no objections; and

·        the scheme represented a significant investment of approximately £7.5million from the private sector and would help to create 50 local construction jobs.

            A Member stated that he had some concerns regarding the balconies, in respect of overlooking, and also requested some additional information in respect of the bicycle parking facilities.

            Mr. T. Stokes, agent, advised the Committee that the scheme had been sympathetically designed to respect the character of the area.  He explained that the balconies included screening and that the site sat below road level, with the blocks around 20 metres from any existing properties.

            In respect of bicycle parking, Mr. A. Beckett, Project Architect, confirmed that Sheffield bicycle stands would be provided within the parking areas, with additional coverage.  A Member asked whether CCTV or other security measures could be installed to provide a more secure environment for residents to store bicycles.  Mr. Beckett advised that they were not at the security specification stage yet but that they could consider that in discussion with the management company at a later stage.

A further Member commended the applicant and developer on the aesthetically pleasing design, which would be a welcome improvement for the area.

            The Committee granted approval to the application, subject to conditions and delegated power to the Director of Planning and Building Control for the final wording of the conditions.