Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies were received from:

Cllr Jerry Kunkler

Cllr Kunkler was substituted by Cllr Anna Cuthbert

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 4 June 2015.

Resolved

To approve and sign as a true and correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 4 June 2015.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

Cllr Mark Connolly declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 7a: 14/04237/OUT - Whistledown, Upavon, Pewsey SN9 6EF. Cllr Connolly previously worked in the same area as the applicant’s daughter. Cllr Connolly stated that he did not know the applicant’s daughter on a personal level and would participate in the item with an open mind.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

There were no announcements.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.

Statements

Members of the public who wish to speak either in favour or against an application or any other item on this agenda are asked to register in person no later than 5.50pm on the day of the meeting.

The Chairman will allow up to 3 speakers in favour and up to 3 speakers against an application and up to 3 speakers on any other item on this agenda. Each speaker will be given up to 3 minutes and invited to speak immediately prior to the item being considered. The rules on public participation in respect of planning applications are detailed in the Council’s Planning Code of Good Practice.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution which excludes, in particular, questions on non-determined planning applications. Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on Thursday 18 June 2015. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

The rules on public participation were noted. There were no questions submitted.

To receive details of the completed and pending appeals.

None.

To consider and determine the following planning applications.

Public Participation:

Richard Edmunds spoke in objection to the application.

Mr Prothero spoke in objection to the application.

July Swanborough spoke in objection to the application.

Rob O’Carroll spoke in support of the application.

Mike Parr spoke in support of the application.

Paul Cowen spoke in support of the application on behalf of Upavon Parish Council.

The Senior Planning Officer introduced the item which recommended that permission be delegated to the Area Development Manager for approval subject to the prior completion of a Section 106 agreement.

Items of late correspondence were reported. Revised consultation responses from the Technical Officer and the Play and Leisure Strategy Officer were noted.  The off-site recreation contribution was confirmed to be £61537 not £67230 as specified in the officer’s report.  It was advised that this would be used towards the upgrading of the former school’s playing field.

Key issues were noted as including the principle of residential development on land outside of the defined settlement boundary, its visual impact and the highway safety implications.  It was confirmed that landscaping was originally a matter for approval but that this had now been withdrawn.

Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer.  It was confirmed that the no condition had been recommended to prevent the 12 bungalows detailed in the application from being increased in size. It was further confirmed that the existing footpath would be maintained and that there would be a route through the estate to connect with the proposed cycle/pedestrian path.  It was also confirmed that existing trees on the boundary were not protected and since landscaping was nota matter for approval there was no current information on the quality of the trees. It was clarified that a condition to ensure that there would be enough CIL money for school places could not be imposed.  It was also confirmed that maintenance of the wall  between the cemetery and the housing development could not be conditioned as it was not within the applicant’s ownership/control.  It would therefore be a civil matter for resolution by the respective landowners.

It was clarified that affordable housing would typically be allocated to local people first through a cascade system and ensured through a clause in the S106 agreement. Offers of affordable housing were usually extended to those at the top of the housing list downwards. The ordering of this list usually placed local people at the top of the list. 

Members of the public then had the opportunity to present their views to the Committee, as detailed above.

A debate followed which focused primarily on whether the proposed construction of 12 bungalows on the agricultural land would be acceptable. It was noted that the redevelopment of the chicken farm could be beneficial in visual terms. This was discussed in the context of policies in the Wiltshire Core Strategy and the National Planning Policy Framework.  It was noted that the site was outside of the defined settlement boundary and that it had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45.

Any other items of business which, in the opinion of the Chairman, should be taken as a matter of urgency 

There were no urgent items.