Agenda item

Report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance).

Report of the Corporate Director (Public Protection, Planning and Governance) on the erection of two new buildings comprising 111 residential apartments, access, car and cycle parking, landscaping and ancillary development involving demolition of existing building.

The site is located within a designated employment area. The application site is located on the corner of Bridge Road East and Swallowfields and it comprises of a vacant, Sui Generis, Land Rover car dealership. The application site currently benefits from a car park to the front and side of the building with limited landscaping along the boundaries.

Two apartment buildings are proposed. The proposed northern building would contain two separate stair cores and a single lift core. It would accommodate 34 apartments (21 x 1-bedroom and 13 x 2- bedroom) and would rise from 4 to 5 storeys in height. The southern building would contain three separate stair cores and two lift cores. It would accommodate 77 apartments (21 x 1-bedroom and 56 x 2-bedroom and would rise from 4 to 7 storeys in height.

The application was presented to the Development Management Committee because it was called in at the request of former Councillor Malcolm Cowan.

Mr T.Waller, Agent, spoke for the application saying that the application would make efficient use of the previously developed land in the urban area and is walking distance of the Town Centre and Railway Station. The proposed apartments have been designed with great care and ensures that they will be of high quality. It will also be surrounded by landscape and the property will be provided with roof gardens and the intension is for them to meet the standards required in the garden city. The application will use high quality materials and the appearances have been refined in pre-application discussions with Officers. The site has been marketed for over three years and complies with the emerging local plan requirements. There had been no serious interest in the site and has been vacant for over two years. There is also residential development throughout the area including to the North and South of the site. The agent believed that this would be an attractive development and would be suitable within the area. 

Mr G.Beard, Neighbour, spoke as an objector, saying that he lives close to the proposed development. Mr Beard stated that all of the flats on the elevation of the proposed building will look into his kitchen, living room, garden and bedroom. Seven storeys of flats will look into the property and each of his neighbour’s properties. The local school will be adversely impacted with the rise in the volume of children coming to the school with the proposed development. Mr Beard stated that currently he has great difficulty driving out of his property and into his property with the amount of traffic on the road, it effectively renders the road; a one way road. There is also a fire station 3 metres down the road and it can cause issues if a vehicle needs to go to an emergency. As residents, we do not have an objections to the site being developed, it is the type of housing that is being built in this particular location and we strongly object to it.

Following discussion, it was proposed and seconded by Councillors S.Kasumu and J.Ranshaw and

RESOLVED:

(8 in favour and 5 against)

The committee overturned officers recommendation to approve this application and by voting to refuse the proposal on the following grounds:

•   The design, by virtue of its height and scale, would have a poor relationship with the adjoining buildings and appear discordant from the streetscene

•   Proposal would provide insufficient parking provision

•   Unit mix was not in accordance with OAN from 2019

•   Unacceptable loss of Employment