Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Magnus MacDonald.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 10 June 2015.

The minutes of the meeting held on 10 June 2015 were presented.

Resolved:

To approve as a correct record and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 10 June 2015 subject to amendments to correct the spelling of Councillor Jon Hubbard’s name.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

The Chairman gave details of the exits to be used in the event of an emergency.

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

Under consideration of the item 6b – application ref. 15/02843/VAR, Councillor Jonathon Seed declared that, as an owner of a similar business in the area, he would abstain from the vote.

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 2.50pm 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 (acting on behalf of the Corporate Director) no later than 5pm on Wednesday 24 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.

No questions had been received from councillors or members of the public.

The Chairman welcomed all present. He then explained the rules of public participation and the procedure to be followed at the meeting.

Public participation:

Mr John White and Mr William Harrison-Allen spoke in support of the application.

The Senior Planning Officer outlined the report that recommended that the application be approved with conditions.

Councillor Christopher Newbury spoke as the local member.

Issues discussed in the course of the debate included: the location the site and the planning history surrounding the existing residential property; how the site had been marketed, and the discount offered; the views of the agricultural consultant that the tie was not required to meet the needs of the agricultural community; the implications of previous appeal cases of this type; the relevance of local plan policy; and the views of the highway officer and the parish council.

Councillor Jonathon Seed proposed, subsequently seconded by Councillor Pip Ridout, that the Committee should approve the application as per the officers recommendation detailed in the report.

Having been put to the vote, the meeting;

Resolved

That the application be approved with the following conditions:

1.    That the development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of three years from the date of this permission.

REASON: To comply with the provisions of Section 91 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as amended by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.

2.    That the development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the following approved plans:

·         Location Plan received on 6th October 2014

REASON: For the avoidance of doubt and in the interests of proper planning.

Note: Councillor Chris Newbury voted against the proposal to approve.

Public participation:

Ms Anna Giddings, Mr Nigel Hindle and Mr Peter Grist spoke in support of the application.

The Senior Planning Officer outlined the report that recommended that the application be refused.

Councillor Christopher Newbury spoke as the local member.

Issues discussed in the course of the debate included: the location of the site in the open countryside; the implications of potential traffic movements arising from the proposals; the current agreed use and the ties on the property; the implications of local plan policies; the marketing that had been undertaken; the sustainability of its location;  how other uses for the site had been explored; the views of the Spatial Planning Team and the Parish Council.

Councillor Chris Newbury proposed, subsequently seconded by Councillor Trevor Carbin, that the Committee should approve the application with conditions.

Having been put to the vote, the motion was lost.

Councillor Andrew Davis proposed, subsequently seconded by Councillor Pip Ridout, that the Committee should refuse the application as per the officer’s recommendation.

Having been put to the vote, the meeting;

Resolved

That the application be refused for the following reasons:

That the site is in the open countryside and therefore is located in an unsustainable location where no special circumstances have been put forward to allow new residential dwellings. The proposal conflicts with the plan-led approach to the delivery of new housing sites outside of the identified limits of development, as set out in Core Policy 1 and 2 which seeks to properly plan for sustainable development and provide new housing sites to deliver the identified needs in a community area through a Site Allocation DPD and/or a Neighbourhood Plan, a strategy that is supported by the Wiltshire Core Strategy Inspector and the Secretary of State in several appeal decisions. Furthermore, the proposal would inevitably result in an unacceptable precedence for other holiday lets in Wiltshire. The proposal therefore fails to comply with Core Policies 1, 2, 48 and 60 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy and the NPPF.

Note: Councillor Jonathon Seed abstained from both votes on the application.

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