The Assistant Director - Planning, Transportation and Highways will submit a report (Document “V”) in relation to an outline application for the demolition of the Police Call-In Station and the erection of a new Police Call-In Station, 3 bungalows and a 64 bedroom Extra Care facility, including details of the layout and access arrangements – 16/03851/MAO.

Recommended –

That the application be referred to the Health and Safety Executive for further consideration and, subject to it deciding not to request that the application be called in for consideration by the Secretary of State, that authority be delegated to the Assistant Director - Planning, Transportation and Highways to grant planning permission for the reasons and subject to the conditions set out in his technical report.

(John Eyles – 01274 434380)

The Assistant Director - Planning, Transportation and Highways submitted a report (Document “V”) in relation to an outline application for the demolition of the existing Police Call-In Station and the erection of a new Police Call-In Station, 3 bungalows and a 64 bedroom Extra Care Facility on the site of the former Wyke Library, Huddersfield Road, Bradford.  The application included details of the proposed layout and access arrangements – 16/03851/MAO.

It was noted that, if the Committee was minded to approve it, the application would have to be referred to the Health and Safety Executive for it to decide if it wished to ask the Secretary of State to ‘call-in’ the application for determination.  This was due to the site being within the consultation zone for two hazardous premises.

A Ward Councillor was in attendance at the meeting and made the following comments:

·         Apart from the footpath, the site had been unmaintained for a lengthy period; it had not been used since Wyke Middle School had closed and the library had relocated.

·         It was considered that this project was worthy of support. It would provide much needed facilities for the local community and would mean that local people would not have to move away from their family and friends in order to access such care.

·         The location was good in terms of access to public transport. It was also close to local amenities and shops and had access to recreational facilities and open space.

·         The roads either side had pedestrian crossing facilities.

·         Some concern had been expressed in respect of potential overlooking.  There was a change in land levels across the site but the existing trees and shrubs along the boundary were to be retained.

·         More on-street parking had taken place since the relocation of the library. The Police Contact Point was well used and the parking associated with this was normally short term.

·         There would be 30 parking spaces provided for the Extra-Care Facility with separate parking provision for the Police Contact Point and the bungalows.

In response to a question from a Member of the Committee she said that there was usually one vehicle, occasionally two, on the site associated with the Police Contact Point and most visits were of a short duration.

A local resident attended the meeting and raised concerns as follows:

·         He lived opposite the site.  Fellow residents held similar views.

·         The primary objection was the proposed extent and scale of development on the site.  The main Extra Care building was proposed to be three storeys high.  The proximity to existing houses and the numbers of units proposed meant that this scheme constituted overdevelopment of the site.

·         The officer’s report said that the majority of the existing trees would be retained and would screen the development; this was not considered to be the case on the Huddersfield Road side; some (to the northern boundary) had already been removed, others were proposed to be removed and a number were not very large.

·         The dwellings on Huddersfield Road were either at the same level or below the level of the site and it was considered that they would be dominated by the development.  The distance to the residential properties was also much less than to those on Woodside Road.

·         There was a main road either side of the site and this would cause problems for residents, particularly of the Extra Care Facility, in terms of gaining access to local amenities.

·         Parking was already a major issue in this area; residents did not have any off-street parking.  Non-residents parked along both sides of the road, this included parents waiting to collect their children from a nearby school.

·         It was believed that visitors to the Extra Care Facility may avoid parking within the site in an effort to avoid issues in exiting onto Woodside Road.

·         The traffic issues in the area were of major concern.

·         If Members had not already done so it was hoped that they would visit the site.

In response to the points raised and questions from Members, the Strategic Director said that:

·         There would be some loss of on-street parking to allow the new entrances to the site to be protected; the relevant Traffic Regulation Orders would be submitted to the appropriate Area Committee for ratification.  Local residents would have the opportunity to make representations at that point, although it should be noted that there was no right to park on the highway and the restrictions would only affect secondary parking not that outside residents’ homes.

·         He was satisfied that that the on-site parking provision would be adequate for the needs of the various uses and would not have a detrimental impact outside the site. 

·         It was accepted that the site was adjacent to two busy roads, this was particularly evident during the school morning peak period but there were no capacity issues in respect of the adjacent highway network.  There was nothing in the accident statistics or the proposed layout to give a cause for concern in respect of highway safety.

·         Only the layout and access were for consideration at this stage so the number of storeys of development was not for determination.  The trees around the boundary would not hide the whole development but would screen the bulk of it. 

·         In terms of proximity to existing dwellings the distances achieved were acceptable in terms of the relevant planning policy and it was not considered that there would be an impact on the amenities of nearby properties.

·         The Reserved Matters application would be submitted to the Committee for determination if more than 6 objections were received or if Members requested that this should happen.

·         Members could specify that a dedicated space be provided for ambulances/emergency services if they considered this to be appropriate.

The agent spoke in support of the application:

·         This was a brownfield site that had fallen into disrepair and had been subject to anti social behaviour.

·         It was in a very sustainable location with good access to amenities and public transport.

·         The distances to existing properties exceeded the Government guidelines and the majority of the buildings had been moved further away from existing dwellings.

·         The applicant had worked closely with the Local Planning Authority to retain as many trees as possible.

·         The car parking provision was in accordance with Highway’s requirements and it was not believed that there would be an impact on Huddersfield Road.

Members commented that:

·         The landscaping scheme should specify the planting of mature trees in the gaps along the boundary or where they had been removed.

·         Parking provision should be reserved for emergency/medical services.

Further to which it was:

Resolved –

That the application be referred to the Health and Safety Executive for further consideration and, subject to it deciding not to request that the application be called in for consideration by the Secretary of State, that authority be delegated to the Assistant Director - Planning, Transportation and Highways to grant planning permission for the reasons and subject to the conditions set out in his technical report together with two further conditions as follows:

(i)         Notwithstanding the details submitted, before the development hereby permitted is first brought into use details of a dedicated parking space for emergency services (including visiting nurses) shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.  The development shall then be carried out in accordance with the approved details.

(ii)        Before the development hereby permitted commences on site, details of the proposed landscaping scheme shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority.  The landscaping scheme shall include details of the trees (size and species) to ensure adequate replacement of those that are removed to accommodate the development. The development shall then be carried out in accordance with the approved details.

ACTION:       Assistant Director - Planning, Transportation and Highways