Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies were received from:

Cllr Mark Connolly.

Cllr Paul Oatway.

Cllr Connolly was substituted by Cllr Philip Whitehead.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on

Resolved

To approve and sign as a true and correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 29 January 2015, subject to the following amendment:-

Minute No. 3 – Declarations of Interest

“Cllr Evans stated that he had not taken part in the application at the Town Council level and would participate in the item with an open mind.”

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

There were no declarations of interest.

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 12 February 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.

There were no planning appeals.

To consider and determine the following planning applications.

Demolition of existing buildings and redevelopment of site to form 27 apartments including car parking, communal areas and landscaping.

Public Participation

Val Compton spoke in objection to the application.

Sue Harris spoke in objection to the application.

Felicity O’Sullivan spoke in objection to the application.

Mada Alfazema spoke in support of the application.

Alex Child spoke in support of the application.

Alan Burns spoke in support of the application.

Justin Cook spoke in objection on behalf of Marlborough Town Council.

The senior planning officer introduced the report which recommended that the decision to grant planning permission should be delegated to the Area Development Manager subject to the prior completion of a Section 106 legal agreement. Key issues were stated to include: the principle of development and provision of care facilities; density and layout; and design, landscaping, visual impact and impact on highway safety.

There were no late items.

Members of the Committee then had the opportunity to ask technical questions of the officer. Clarification was sought on the crossing at Pewsey Road; it was confirmed that there was an existing dropped kerb on Pewsey Road for assisting pedestrians crossing the road, and that a controlled crossing point was not proposed as part of the development. It was asked if the S106 contribution for affordable housing could be ringfenced for the Marlborough community area, this would be investigated if needed. The application was noted as being a redevelopment proposal, and did not come under the category of change of use.  The parking on Granham Close was explained as not changing, and there would be a parking area with provision for bicycles and mobility users.

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

The division member Cllr Nicholas Fogg spoke in opposition to the application. It was stated that it went against Core Policy 46 and would not fulfil the needs of the Marlborough area. The application was described as an overdevelopment and would cause parking issues within the area.

It was explained that the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), Planning Policy guidance and the Wiltshire Core Strategy declared that there was a need to plan for housing for the elderly. The Council’s New Housing team also outlined that there was a need for elderly accommodation in the Marlborough area. The elderly housing quota for the area was explained as being at a minimum level that could be exceeded, and was not a limit. There had been no objections from any statutory bodies to state that there would be a strain on any local services as a result of the application. The site had been deemed a suitable brown-field site for redevelopment, and the parking had been declared as acceptable.

A debate followed where Core Policies 1, 43 and 46 were discussed, and as such the effect of the application on the sustainability and viability of the Marlborough community was considered, along with the promotion of a mixed and balanced community. A  ...  view the full minutes text for item 19.1

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.