Agenda item

To consider report PES/356cof the Head of Economy and Planning.

 

RECOMMENDATION to PERMIT.

The Committee considered report PES/356c of the Head of Economy and Planning which proposed as follows:

 

Demolition of Longley House (offices) & erection of building ranging between 4 to 9 storeys to provide 121 x residential units (class C3) with associated sub-station, car/cycle parking, tree works, public realm improvements and landscaping.

 

Councillors A Belben, Irvine, Jaggard, Mwagale, Purdy, Sharma, and P Smith declared they had visited the site.

 

The Principal Planning Officer (VC) provided a verbal summation of the application and updated the Committee regarding amendments to the application conditions.  The new proposed conditions were therefore as follows:

 

1.     The development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of 3 years from the date of thispermission.

REASON: To comply with Section 91 of the Town & Country Planning Act 1990.

 

2.     The development hereby permitted shall not be carried out other than in accordance with the approved plans as listed below save as varied by the conditionshereafter:

(Drawing numbers to be added)

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

 

3.     No works above ground level shall be carried out unless and until a schedule of materials and finishes, together with samples of such materials and finishes to be used for external walls, roofs, balconies and glazing of the proposed buildinghave been submitted to and approved by the Local Planning Authority. The development shall be carried out in strict accordance with the agreed details.

REASON: To enable the Local Planning Authority to control the development in detail in the interests of amenity by endeavouring to achieve a building of visual quality in accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

4.     No development shall take place, including any works of demolition, until a Construction Management Plan has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Thereafter the approved Plan shall be implemented and adhered to throughout the entire construction period. The Plan shall provide details as appropriate but not necessarily be restricted to the followingmatters:-

·       the anticipated number, frequency and types of vehicles used duringconstruction,

·       the method of access and routing of vehicles duringconstruction,

·       details of the area(s) subject to constructionactivity,

·       details of cranes and other tall construction equipment (including details of obstaclelighting)

·       the parking of vehicles by site operatives andvisitors,

·       the loading and unloading of plant, materials andwaste,

·       the height and areas for the storage of plant, equipment and materials used in construction of thedevelopment,

·       details of temporary lighting

·       the erection and maintenance of securityhoarding,

·       the provision of wheel washing facilities and other works required to mitigate the impact of construction upon the public highway  (includingthe provision of temporary Traffic RegulationOrders),

·       details of public engagement both prior to and during constructionworks.

·       details of a dust and smoke managementplan

·       control and disposal of putrescible waste to prevent attraction ofbirds

·       site restoration

·       protection and mitigation measures for wildlife andhabitat

REASON: In the interests of highway safety, the amenities of the area, to ensure that the development does not endanger the safe movements of aircraft or the operation of Gatwick Airport through interference with communication, navigational aids & surveillance equipment and to accord with Policies CH3 and IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

5.     No on-site preparation works or development related to this planning permission shall take place until the approved details as set out in the Arboricultural Impact Assessment dated 20th December 2019 and the Arboricultural Method Statement dated 23rd December 2019 including the tree protection measures have been implemented in full. The development shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details and the tree protection measures shall thereafter be retained in accordance with the approved details throughout the construction period until the development is completed.

REASON: To ensure the retention and maintenance of trees important to the visual amenity and the environment of the development in accordance with Policy CH3 of Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030 and the Green Infrastructure Supplementary Planning Document.

 

6.     Development shall not begin until a scheme to deal with contamination of the site and / or ground water has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The scheme shall include all the following measures:

1.     The submitted Desk Study entitled ‘Desk Study and Preliminary Risk Assessment Report ‘by ST Consult dated 11th November 2019.

 

And the following stages where required:-

2.     A Detailed Site Investigation. This shall be carried out by a suitably qualified and accredited consultant/contractor in accordance with a Quality Assured sampling and analysis methodology BS 10175:2011. The site investigation should fully and effectively characterise the nature and extent of any land and/or groundwater contamination and its implications, including an assessment of risk to any potential receptors. A full report on the findings of the site investigation shall be submitted to the LPA

 

3.     Remediation. A written remediation statement, detailing the works necessary so as to render harmless the identified contamination given the proposed end use of the site and surrounding environment, including any controlled waters, shall be submitted to the LPA and agreed in writing with the LPA prior to any remediation commencing on site. Two copies of the remediation report shall be submitted to theLPA.

 

4.     Post Remediation Verification Testing and Report. Approved remediation works shall be carried out in full on site, under a quality assured scheme to demonstrate compliance with the proposed methodology and best practice guidance. If during the remediation works contamination is encountered that had not previously been identified then the additional contamination shall be fully assessed and an appropriate remediation scheme agreed with the LPA in accordance with the process laid out at points 1 – 3 above.

 

5.     Upon completion of the remediation works, this condition shall not be discharged until further validation report has been submitted to, and approved by the LPA. The validation report shall include quality assurance certificates to show that the works have been carried out in accordance with the approved methodology. Details of any post remedial sampling and analysis to show the site has reached the required clean-up criteria shall be included in the validation report together with the necessary documentation detailing what waste materials have been removed from thesite.

 

Development shall not commence until the measures approved in the scheme have been implemented.

REASON: To safeguard occupiers of the site in accordance with Policy ENV10 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 - 2030.

 

7.     No building or structure that forms part of the development hereby permitted shall exceed 108.795m AOD.

REASON: To avoid any building/structure on the application site endangering the safe movement of aircraft and the operation of Gatwick Airport through interference with communication, navigational aids and surveillance equipment in accordance with Policy IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

8.     Notwithstanding the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 2015 or any Order amending, revoking and re-enacting this order with or without modification, no development, telecommunications equipment, renewable energy equipment, other equipment or advertisements other than those shown on the drawings hereby approved shall be installed or carried out on the roof of the development hereby permitted without the prior, express planning permission of the Local Planning Authority.

REASON: To ensure that the development does not endanger the safe movement of aircraft or the operation of Gatwick Airport through interference with communication, navigational aids and surveillance equipment, to enable the Local Planning Authority to control extensions and alterations that could have significant visual impact and in accordance with Policies CH3 and IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030 and the Urban Design Supplementary PlanningDocument.

 

9.     Obstacle lights shall be placed on the four corners of the upper roof level. These obstacle lights must be Type B, steady state red lights at 32 candelas. Details of these lights can be found in Table Q-1. Characteristics of obstacle lights & Table Q-2. Light distribution for low intensity obstacle lights in Chapter Q – Visual Aids for Denoting Obstacles of CS ADR-DSN available at https://www.easa.europa.eu/document-library/certification-specifications/ cs-adr-dsn-issue-4.  The obstacle lights should be lit from 30 minutes before sunset to 30 minutes after sunrise.

REASON: Permanent illuminated obstacle lights are required on the development to avoid endangering the safe movement of aircraft and the operation of Gatwick Airport in accordance with Policy IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

10.  No works above ground level shall be carried out unless and until the following acoustic design details comprising the details of the balcony construction, the glazing, the acoustic barrier along the northern boundary, the ventilation system and the structural partitions between the service or plant areas and any residential dwelling have been submitted to and agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority. Once so agreed the development shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details and maintained in perpetuity for the life of the development. The details shall include the design drawings, supporting documentation and scientific and technical details supporting the choice ofdesign.

REASON: To prevent noise giving rise to significant adverse impacts on health and quality of life in accordance with paragraph 170 and 180 of the National Planning Policy Framework and the Noise Policy Statement for England and policies CH3 and ENV11 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

11.  All plant, machinery and equipment (including fans, ducting and external openings) to be  installed  as part of the development shall be maintained and operated so as to prevent the transmission of noise and vibration into any premises either attached to, or in the vicinity of the premises to which the applicationrefers.

REASON: To prevent noise giving rise to significant adverse impacts on health and quality of life in accordance with paragraph 170 and 180 of the National Planning Policy Framework and the Noise Policy Statement for England and policies CH3 and ENV11 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

12.  No works above ground level shall be carried out until a scheme has been submitted to and agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority in relation to the prevention of overheating in the dwellings. Once so agreed the scheme shall be implemented strictly in accordance with the agreed details and maintained in perpetuity for the life of the development. The scheme shall include a Chartered Institute of Building Service Engineers Technical Manual 59 (CIBSE TM:59) assessment for Design Standard Year (DSY) 1 for 2020s 2050s and 2080s and must demonstrate a pass for all dwellings against DSY 1 2020s. DSY 1 shall be reported for 2050s and 2080s. In designing to prevent overheating then regard shall be had to the cooling hierarchy:

·       Minimise internal heat generation through energy efficient design;

·       Reduce the amount of heat entering a building in summer through orientation, shading, albedo, fenestration, insulation and green roofs and walls;

·       Design to enable passive ventilation (e.g. cross ventilation);

·       Provide mechanical ventilation;

·       Provide active cooling (ensuring they are the lowest carbon options).

REASON:To securesustainable developmentin accordancewith Chapter2 ofthe NPPF and policies CH3 and ENV6 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan2015-2030.

 

13.  No works above ground level shall be carried out until a checklist of actions required to implement the mitigation and enhancement recommendations set out in the ecological assessment report by Ecology Solutions has been prepared and a copy sent to, and approved in writing by, the Local Planning Authority. The actionsset outin theapproved checklistshall beimplemented infull unlessotherwise approvedin writing by the Local Planning Authority and a completed copy, signed by the project ecologist shall be submitted to the Local Planning Authority for approval prior to first occupation of anyunit.

REASON: To ensure that the proposals avoid adverse impacts on protected and priority species and contribute to a net gain in biodiversity, in accordance with Policy ENV2 of the Local Plan and paragraph 175 of the NPPF.

 

14.  No vehicles other than emergency and refuse vehicles shall be permitted to enter or exit the site via EastPark.

REASON: In the interest of highway safety, the amenities of the area and to ensure a satisfactory standard of access to the development in accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 -2030.

 

15.  No part of the development shall be occupied until a footway providing a continuous connection from the eastern boundary of the site to connect with the existing footway within the adjoining Arora Hotel site has been provided in accordance with plans and details submitted to and approved and writing by the Local Planning Authority, unless otherwise agreed inwriting.

REASON: In the interests of highway safety, improved connectivity and to accord with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015- 2030.

 

16.  The development shall not be occupied until the vehicle parking and turning spaces have been constructed and provided in accordance with the approved plans. These spaces shall thereafter only be used and retained for their designateduse.

REASON: To provide adequate on-site parking and turning space for the development in accordance with Policies CH3 and IN4 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan2015-2030.

 

17.  The development shall not be occupied unless and until the bollards and traffic barriers have been installed in accordance with details to be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The bollards and barrier shall thereafter be retained as part of the development.

REASON: in the interest of road safety and amenity and in accordance with policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 -2030.

 

18.  The development shall not be occupied until the cycle parking facilities have been provided in accordance with the details shown on approved plans, unless an alternative location is agreed by the Local Planning Authority in writing. These facilities shall thereafter be retained for their designateduse.

REASON: To provide alternative travel options to the use of the car in accordance with policies CH3 and IN4 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 – 2030.

 

19.  The development hereby approved shall not be occupied until the facilities for refuse and recycling bin storage and collection and access for collection have been provided in accordance with the approved plans and details, unless an alternative location is agreed by the Local Planning Authority in writing. The facilities shall subsequently be maintained and be retained for the use ofresidents.

REASON: To ensure the operational requirements of the site are met in accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

20.  No works above ground level shall be carried out until full details of the maintenance and management of the SuDS system is set out in a site-specific maintenance manual and submitted to and approved in writingby the Local Planning Authority. The development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved details.

REASON: To reduce the risk of flooding and safeguard future occupants of the site in accordance with Policy ENV8 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 - 2030.

 

21.  No above ground development shall take place unless and until there has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority a scheme of hard and soft landscaping, which shall include indications of all existing trees and hedgerows on the land, and details of any to be retained, new specimens to be planted and details of the boundary treatments, the external appearance of the sub -station, the electric vehicle charging points and external lighting.  The scheme shall be implemented in accordance with the approveddetails.

REASON: In the interests of amenity and of the environment of the development in accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 - 2030.

 

22.  All planting, seeding or turfing comprised in the approved details of landscaping shall be carried out in the first planting and seeding seasons following the occupation of the buildings or the completion of the development, whichever is the sooner, and any trees or plants which within a period of five years from the completion of the development die, are removed, or become seriously damaged or diseased shall be replaced in the next planting season with others of similar size and species, unless the Local Planning Authority gives written consent to anyvariation.

REASON: In the interests of amenity and of the environment of the development in the accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 - 2030.

 

23.  No above ground development shall take place unless and until there has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority a landscape management plan, including long term design objectives, management responsibilities and maintenance schedules for all landscape areas. The landscaping management plans shall be carried out asapproved.

REASON: In the interests of amenity and of the environment of the development in accordance with Policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 - 2030.

 

24.  No development above slab level shall take place unless and until a scheme to provide combined television reception facilities and superfast broadband to the dwellings hereby approved has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The scheme shall be implemented in accordance with the agreed details unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The approved facilities shall be made available to each individual unit prior to that unit beingoccupied.

REASON: In the interests of visual amenity, to help reduce social exclusion and to allow good access to services in accordance with Policies CH3 and IN2 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

25.  Prior to their installation, details of rainwater goods, external extract grilles, pipes and flues shall be submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The development shall thereafter be implemented in accordance with the approved details unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local PlanningAuthority.

REASON: To enable the Local Planning Authority to control the development in detail in the interests of amenity by endeavouring to achieve a building of visual quality in accordance with policy CH3 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 – 2030.

 

26.  No development, except demolition of the existing building, shall commence until the following information has been submitted to and agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority:

 

A) details of the communal gas heating system, referred to in the submitted Energy and Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020, including provisions to enable potential connection to a future District Energy Scheme;

 

            or

 

B) Details of an alternative site-wide energy strategy, including verification that it will achieve:

•         Lower CO2 emissions than the strategy detailed in the Energy and

Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020, when both are assessed according to a version of the SAP methodology to be agreed with the local planning authority;

and,

•         A standard of energy efficiency no worse than the strategy detailed in the Energy and Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020, when both are assessed according to a version of the SAP methodology to be agreed with the local planning authority, OR additional CO2 reductions through the inclusion of further solar photovoltaics with an additional capacity of at least 10kWp over and above that described in the submitted Energy and Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020.

 

The development shall be implemented in accordance with the agreed details.

REASON: In the interests of environmental sustainability, in accordance with policy ENV7 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015 and the Planning and Climate Change SPD.

 

27.  The residential units shall not be occupied until details have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority to demonstrate that they shall achieve a water efficiency standard by consuming not more than 110 litres per person per day maximum water consumption. The scheme shall be implemented in accordance with the agreeddetails.

REASON: In the interests of sustainable design and efficient use of water resources in accordance with Policy ENV9 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030 and the Planning and Climate Change SPD.

 

28.  No works above ground level shall be carried out until full details of the PV solar energy scheme referred to in the submitted Energy and Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020 have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. No subsequent alterations to the approved solar energy scheme are to take place unless submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The scheme shall be implemented as approved prior to first occupation of the development hereby approved unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

REASON: To ensure the development addresses energy efficiency and climate change, does not endanger the safe movement of aircraft or the operation of Gatwick Airport through glint and glare in accordance with Policies ENV6 and IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030 and the Planning and Climate Change SPD.

 

29.  The residential units shall not be occupied until design-stage SAP calculation summaries for the development, detailing a level of environmental performance consistent with the submitted Energy and Sustainability Strategy dated 6 January 2020, or an alternative strategy agreed under condition 26, have been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. The scheme shall be implemented in accordance with the agreed details.

REASON: In the interests of environmental sustainability, in accordance with policy ENV6 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030 and the Planning and Climate Change SPD.

 

30.  The Bird Hazard Management Plan dated December 2019 shall be implemented as approved upon completion of the roof and shall remain in force for the life of the development. No subsequent alterations to the plan are to take place unless first submitted to and approved in writing by the Local PlanningAuthority.

REASON: It is necessary to manage the roof in order to mitigate bird hazard and avoid endangering the safe movements of aircraft and the operation of Gatwick Airport through the attractiveness of birds in accordance with policies CH3 and IN1 of the Crawley Borough Local Plan 2015-2030.

 

In line with the Council’s Virtual Committee Procedure Rules, two statements submitted by members of the public in regard to the application were read to the Committee.

 

A statement from an objector (Mr Jason Baughan) highlighted matters including:

·       The impact of the construction works on nearby residents in relation to both the amount of dust generated by the works and the potential for traffic delays caused by works vehicles using the access road.

·       The extent and duration of noise caused by building works that had occurred over the months prior, which were indicative of the noise disruption that the proposed development would cause to neighbours.

·       The height of the proposed development – which would lead to overlooking and a loss of privacy in the resident’s garden.

 

A statement from a supporter (the applicant, A2 Dominion) highlighted matters including:

·       The provision of 100% affordable housing as part of the proposed development, which exceeded local planning policy requirements.

·       That through engagement with the Local Planning Authority, the scheme was developed to address concerns regarding overlooking of neighbouring properties through the inclusion of sawtooth projections.

·       The proposed 58 car parking spaces at the site (30% of which would provide electric vehicle charging points) which equated to 50% provision.  This was deemed acceptable due to the site’s proximity to public transport links.

 

The Committee then considered the application, and discussed the following:

·       The requirement from the Government to increase the number and density of housing in Crawley.

·       The sustainable location of the site.

·       It was recognised that the applicant had worked with planning officers on the design of the proposed development in order to meet the Local Planning Authority’s criteria, for example regarding noise and overlooking.

·       Concerns were raised regarding the height and massing of the development, which was considered to be out of proportion to nearby buildings.  The Principal Planning Officer clarified that the stepped design, the detailing and the materials proposed provided a transition to the scale and character of surrounding development.

·       Following a query from a Committee member, the Principal Planning Officer confirmed that the proposed development was to be sited, at its closest points, 21 metres from Clitherow Gardens and 14.4 metres from Richmond Court.  It was heard that Longley House was currently sited 24 metres and 37 metres from each respectively.

·       It was confirmed that bedroom windows facing toward the Arora Hotel would have a panel of obscured glass in the centre in order to mitigate overlooking.

·       The shortfall of amenity space was queried.  It was confirmed that, regarding the smallest units, there would be a shortfall of between 0.3 and 0.4 metres of balcony space for six of the one bedroom dwellings.

·       It was heard that condition 4 required a construction management plan be submitted, which would set out parameters on access, noise, cranes, etc during the construction period.

·       Committee members expressed support for the environmentally friendly aspects of the proposals, such as solar panels and sustainable planting.

·       Concerns were raised regarding the proposed provision of 58 parking spaces, which was thought to be insufficient considering the number of 2 and 3 bedroom dwellings at the site.  The Planning Officer confirmed that the applicant would implement a car park management scheme.

·       It was confirmed that 33 letters of ‘no objection’ had been received from residents across Crawley regarding the application.

·       Following a query from a Committee member regarding a possible alternative access route to the site it was clarified that the decision had to be made with regard to the proposed access, to which West Sussex County Council as the highways authority had raised no objections.

 

A recorded vote was then taken on the recommendation in accordance with the Council’s Virtual Committee Procedure Rules.  The names of the Councillors voting for and against the recommendation to permit, along with any abstentions, were recorded as follows:

 

For the recommendation to permit:

Councillors Irvine, Purdy, Rana, Sharma and P Smith (5).

 

Against the recommendation to permit:

Councillors A Belben, Jaggard, and Mwagale (3).

 

Abstentions:

None.

 

RESOLVED

 

Permit subject to conditions and informatives set out in report PES/356c (as amended above), and the completion of a section 106 agreement to secure the infrastructure contributions and provisions set out in paragraph 6.4 of the report.