Agenda and minutes

Venue: Meeting Room 1, Abbey House, Abbey Close, Abingdon, OX14 3JE

Contact: Emily Barry, Democratic Services Officer  07717 272442

Items
No. Item

11.

Chair's announcements

To receive any announcements from the chair and general housekeeping matters.

Minutes:

The chair welcomed everyone to the meeting, outlined the procedure to be followed and advised on emergency evacuation arrangements.

 

12.

Apologies for absence

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Ken Arlett, David Bretherton, Tim Bearder, and Elizabeth Gillespie.

13.

Minutes of the previous meeting pdf icon PDF 279 KB

To adopt and sign as a correct record the Planning Committee minutes of the meeting held on 15 March 2023. 

Minutes:

RESOLVED: to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 15 March 2023 as a correct record and agree that the Chair sign these as such.

 

14.

Declarations of interest

To receive declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests, other registrable interests and non-registrable interests or any conflicts of interest in respect of items on the agenda for this meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

15.

Urgent business

To receive notification of any matters which the chair determines should be considered as urgent business and the special circumstances which have made the matters urgent and to receive any notification of any applications deferred or withdrawn.

Minutes:

There was no urgent business.

16.

Proposals for site visits

Minutes:

There were no proposals for site visits.

17.

Public participation

To receive any statements from members of the public that have registered to speak on planning applications which are being presented to this committee meeting. 

Minutes:

The list showing members of the public who had registered to speak was tabled at the meeting.

18.

P22/S3609/FUL - Horse & Harrow, Main Street, West Hagbourne, OX11 0NB pdf icon PDF 372 KB

Change of use of existing public house (Sui Generis) to provide a three-bed dwelling and a four-bed dwelling (Use C3), erection of a three-bed and two four-bed dwellings (Use C3) on land adjacent to the public house accessed from Main Street, with associated parking and landscaping, along with the demolition of existing outbuilding (amended plans received 1 and 8 December 2022 to rectify discrepancy on existing elevation plans, amended boundary treatment, revised energy statement, revised site plan to include air source heat pumps and biodiversity metric and amended red line plan to reduce site area received 8 February 2023. Further amended plans also received on 15 February 2023 to include amended visibility splays, turning area, car parking, amendment to the roof of plot 1, amendment to the finish of the dwellings to render, and the setting back of plot 5).

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The committee considered planning application P22/S3609/FUL for the change of use of existing public house (Sui Generis) to provide a three-bed dwelling and a four-bed dwelling (Use C3), erection of a three-bed and two four-bed dwellings (Use C3) on land adjacent to the public house accessed from Main Street, with associated parking and landscaping, along with the demolition of existing outbuilding (amended plans received 1 and 8 December 2022 to rectify discrepancy on existing elevation plans, amended boundary treatment, revised energy statement, revised site plan to include air source heat pumps and biodiversity metric and amended red line plan to reduce site area received 8 February 2023. Further amended plans also received on 15 February 2023 to include amended visibility splays, turning area, car parking, amendment to the roof of plot 1, amendment to the finish of the dwellings to render, and the setting back of plot 5), on land at Horse & Harrow, Main Street, West Hagbourne.  

 

Consultations, representations, policy and guidance, and the site’s planning history were detailed in the officer’s report, which formed part of the agenda pack for the meeting. 

 

The planning officer introduced the report and highlighted that the application was brought to the committee at the request of the Development Manager, due to a council staff member living in the first-floor apartment of the pub, and following an objection from West Hagbourne Parish Council. The planning officer informed the committee that the parish council’s concerns centred around the lack of consultation between the developer and the village and that, as this was the last pub and public building in the village, if the application was granted there would be a lack of public meeting spaces.

 

The planning officer noted that the site itself was situated on the western edge of West Hagbourne with several houses built nearby to the east and with several other houses being built to the west. Due to these developments, the planning officer considered the application to be an infill development.

 

The planning officer also highlighted to members that the parcel of land to the west side of the site was in the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty whilst the pub itself sat within the West Hagbourne Conservation Area. However, as the proposed dwellings in the application were designed with some pitched and some hipped roofs and finished with white render, the planning officer believed that they would be in character with the surrounding buildings and sympathetic to the area.

 

Finally, the planning officer informed members that the council had instructed an independent viability assessment and that the assessor believed that the pub would be unlikely to be viable in the future.

 

Overall, based on the viability assessment reports and the lack of objections received from technical consultees, the planning officer recommended that the application be approved, subject to conditions.

 

 

Councillor Michael Butler spoke on behalf of West Hagbourne Parish Council, objecting to the application. 

 

David Cooper spoke objecting to the application. 

 

Christian Roberts, representing the applicant, and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.

19.

P23/S0268/FUL and P23/S0269/LB - 23 Reading Road, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 1AB pdf icon PDF 335 KB

Change of use of the ground floor from retail to retail and residential.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The committee considered planning application P23/S0268/FUL and listed building consent application P23/S0269/LB for the change of use of the ground floor from retail to retail and residential, on land at 23 Reading Road, Henley-on-Thames.  

 

Consultations, representations, policy and guidance, and the site’s planning history were detailed in the officer’s report, which formed part of the agenda pack for the meeting. 

 

The planning officer introduced the report and highlighted that the application was called into the committee by a local ward member and due to the objection of Henley Town Council.

 

The planning officer informed the committee that the application and listed building consent application were for the conversion of the rear of 23 Reading Road into a one bed dwelling whilst retaining the front portion of the building for commercial use, and that the site itself was in the built up area of Henley and in the Henley Conservation Area.

 

The planning officer also spoke to the committee about the site’s history, noting the 2009 granting of permission for an extension to the rear of the property that was never carried out, and that the current application was similar to that 2009 granted application including a partition in the building to separate the retail at the front of the building from the dwelling at the back.

 

The planning officer also highlighted to members that the Economic Development team supported the proposal as they believed the smaller unit would be more viable, provided that the shopfront and basement would be retained. Also, even though no parking was proposed for the scheme, Oxfordshire County Council Highways had no objection due to the site’s sustainable town centre location and ease of access to key services and facilities.

 

The planning officer also noted that there were no changes proposed to the front of the property and external alterations were considered to be minor resulting in the conservation officer also having no objection.

 

Overall, as the site would retain valid commercial use whilst providing an acceptable one-bedroom accommodation, and as there were no objections from technical consultees, the planning officer recommended that the application be approved subject to conditions.

 

 

Gavin Jackson, the agent representing the applicant, spoke in support of the application. 

 

 

The committee asked about the planned arrangement for the collection of waste bins from the residential property and the planning officer informed members that the occupier could share the bin storage in the courtyard garden, but that there were legal questions for the landlord to answer about their access to that. However, if this was not possible, the officer confirmed that they would use the same method as the current two flats above the property for a fortnightly sack collection. The planning officer also informed the committee that the retail waste would continue to be collected as per their current arrangement and that they did not believe that waste collection would be a reason for refusing the applications.

 

Members inquired into the permitted development rights of the building and if there was potential  ...  view the full minutes text for item 19.

 

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