Agenda item

Erection of a 3-bed bungalow to the rear of 107 Bouverie Avenue South, associated access and driveway, and hard and soft landscaping.

Public Participation

Martin Cook spoke in objection to the application

John Rolt spoke in objection to the application

Adrian Abbott spoke in objection to the application

Dan Roycroft (Agent) spoke in support of the application

The Planning Officer, Louise Porter presented the application for the erection of a 3-bed bungalow to the rear of 107 Bouverie Avenue, associated access and driveway, and hard and soft landscaping. The application was recommended for approval.

A written response from the Senior Environmental Health Officer, to points raised in relation to noise, had been uploaded to the online agenda as supplement 2.

The main issues which had been considered to be material in the determination of this application were listed as, Principle of development, Character and appearance of the area, Impact on neighbour amenity, Highway Safety, Trees

Archaeology, Waste collection, and River Avon Special Area of Conservation - Phosphate Neutral Development.

Members of the Committee had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer. In response to queries, it was clarified that the current wooden fencing shown in photographs of the site would be replaced with acoustic fencing and be covered by an additional condition if the application was approved.

The driveway would run west to east and the number of bedrooms proposed had decreased from a previous application from 4 to 3.

All 22 letters received were in objection to the scheme.

The ownership of the hedge around the site was not confirmed, however the Officer noted that it would be difficult to put a control on the height of a hedge in planning terms.

Members of the public, as detailed above, then had the opportunity to speak on the application.

Some of the main points included comments around the access driveway, its proximity and adverse impact to neighbouring properties.

The Noise Assessment report, submitted plans, the proximity data in particular to neighbouring dwellings, the elevated position of the proposed development and the impact on surrounding properties.

The Planning Inspector report and previous comments relating to unsatisfactory proposals in terms of noise, disturbance, privacy and outlook in relation to the neighbouring properties was also referred to.

The proposed sewerage pumping system in relation to the proximity of the neighbouring dwellings and emergency vehicle access were also noted concerns.

Local Member Cllr Brian Dalton then spoke in objection to the application, noting that he had met with the applicant and local residents over the past few months.

The application had been registered in July 2020, he stated that it had taken a long time to determine one property. He had also asked for a Member site visit as he had felt it was necessary due to the considerable drop in height between the proposed dwelling and surrounding properties, however due to the Covid restrictions in place it had not been possible. Cllr Dalton felt that if a site visit had taken place, Members would have seen the height different, which was not available due to there being no drawings submitted to reflect that point. 

He drew attention to resident concerns relating to the Officer recommendation being made before the end of the public consultation period and that the Officer had not visited the site.

It was noted that this was the third application for this site, and that Bouverie Avenue South had fairly large properties and gardens, with no infill developments along that side of the road.

Cllr Dalton went on to state that the Environmental Health Officer comment regarding noise and vehicle movements in that they would not have an adverse effect, did not however mean that they would not be noticeable. He also noted that the Planning Inspector had thrown the previous application out at appeal as noise was a factor. Foul drainage and soakaways issues had also been picked up by the Inspector.

Cllr Dalton then moved a motion of refusal against Officer recommendation, stating the reasons as noted above and in addition quoted reasons as CP57, Objective 16, paras 9, 70, 122, 124, 127 and 130. This was seconded by Cllr Hocking.

The Committee was invited to discuss the application, the main points included

comments around ‘garden grabbing’, and the location of the development in that it would be closer to the neighbours than the applicants dwelling.

The impact the development would have on the neighbouring properties and associated noise.

Whether the current proposal for a 3-bedroom property was a sufficient reduction in size to mitigate the impact.

Other matters discussed included limited garden space, vehicular access, sewage disposal on a sloping site, quality of design and place shaping, and that any additional dwelling would need to blend with the existing properties and gardens, which were interlocked and mature.

The Members indicated that despite the changes and additional impact reports accompanying the application, it had not overcome the reasons for refusal previously imposed or the Inspectors concerns.

Following debate the Committee confirmed they had heard and seen all relevant visual materials, and voted on the motion of refusal against officer recommendation, with the reasons stated.

It was:

Resolved:

that application 20/06105/FUL be Refused against Officer recommendation for the following reasons:

Bouverie Avenue South is characterised by large dwellings in spacious, well landscaped plots. Because of this character, levels of privacy are generally high, with limited inter-relationships between properties.

However, the proposal would result in a new single storey dwelling located to the rear of an existing established property, and within part of the existing garden area. A new driveway and access would be required to service the dwelling, which would be located directly adjacent to the side façade of the existing property.

Consequently, and notwithstanding the adjustments to the scheme that have been proposed, the proposal would have a significantly adverse impact on the spacious and silvan characteristics of the area, and would result in significantly reduced amenity levels for the occupiers of neighbouring properties, in particular Nos.107 and 109 Bouverie Avenue South, 9 Francis Way, and 59a Bouverie Avenue, due to the close inter-relationships between the dwellings, and the access and driveway, particularly in terms of significantly reduced privacy and general noise and disturbance.

The proposed dwelling would therefore be harmful to the existing character of the area, and have a detrimental impact on existing neighbouring amenities, contrary to Policy CP57 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy, objective 16 of the Council's adopted design guide Creating Places, and the aims of the NPPF in particular paras 09, 70, mvmt10 122, 124, 127 and 130 which seek to provide a high level of design and a high level of sustainable development which reflects the character of the area.