There are four planning applications on the schedule for next week’s planning meeting. You can download the officer’s reports here.
The first is for adding extensions and converting no. 3 Station Avenue, Rayleigh into two flats – this is recommended for approval by the officers but called into the meeting by Cllr Chris Lumley.
The second is at Lords Golf Club, Hullbridge – “RETROSPECTIVE APPLICATION TO CONSTRUCT EARTH BUND 1.5M HIGH TO PART OF DRIVING RANGE AND CONSTRUCT 5M HIGH POLE AND NETTING TO RAISED BUND TOP”. It is recommended for approval by officers. There’s a lot of information on this and to get a full picture you really need to look at the report. But here are some extracts:
Six letters have been received in response to the neighbour notification and which in the main make the following comments and objections:-
o Noise and disturbance.
o Overdevelopment.
o Insufficient drainage.
o Object on the basis that the applicants have received an enforcement
notice to stop the transfer of soil, etc. to this site. o Lorries had to carry this soil along Rawreth Lane and hence the notice. o Was previously refused and should not be allowed to continue. o Why is an application of this nature being considered? o Have no confidence in the owner building what is applied for. o The 1.5m high bund created acts as a dam for any excess water from
adjoining areas and affecting properties in Wellington Avenue.
o The bund should be removed without delay before flooding occurs as the water will not be able to run freely across the site as it always has done in the past.
o Very angry that the applicant appears to do what he chooses with or without the Council?s consent.
o Two previous applications rejected.
o Spoil containing items such as old cable and rubbish brought to the site by lorry during the day and on Saturdays. This was then topped off with top soil. o None of the safety measures were put in place for users of the footpath and thus reducing costs.
o Considerable noise and vibration.
o Concern for contaminants that may pollute the water course and adjoining fishery. o The work has been done in the full knowledge that permission did not exist and even ignored the service of notices.
o Applicants appear to hold the Council?s authority in contempt and have demonstrated they cannot be trusted to comply with planning conditions to any consent that is granted.
o It would seem that the risks of punitive fines are outweighed by the income derived from accepting lorry loads of landfill onto their site.
o If retrospective planning permission is granted it would imply that if permission is declined it is still possible to proceed and worry about regularising consent at a latter stage.
MATERIAL PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS
2.14 The current application is substantially different in scale to the previously refused applications:-
o The current application relates only to the driving range area of some 0.875ha as opposed to parts of all three elements of the site as a whole in the previous application which related to some 21.5ha.
o The bunding and raised earth areas in this current application are substantially smaller in height compared to the 5m average height of the practice range works in the previous application.
o The bund formed in the current application involves only mounding to the ?U? shaped area rather than transformation of landform to the whole practice range area as in the case of the previous application.
o The previous applications extended the landform to the inside of the ditch bank top around the site. The current application provides the toe to the bund 20m ? 45m to the boundary of gardens in Wellington Avenue. Similarly, the toe of the bund would be between 25m ? 47m from the bank top to the ditch alongside Hullbridge Road
CONCLUSION
2.33 The proposal seeks consent for development to provide a bunded land form to contain the practice range area immediately to the north of the driving range building. Also proposed to the bund top is the provision of a 5m high catch fence. The proposal is retrospective and the surface recently seeded. The area contained within the bund remains grassed and available for play.
2.34 The bund works undertaken are modest in scale to a height ranging between 1.34m ? 1.79m and would be located a good distance from the site boundaries and set against the backdrop of the club building envelope and the two golf courses on the greater site beyond.
2.35 The proposal would not conflict with Green Belt or leisure policies contained within the Council?s adopted Local Plan (2006) or give rise to pollution or amenity concerns that can be substantiated.
2.36 Subject to no adverse comments being received from the Essex County Council?s Head of Environmental Planning concerning minerals and waste, the recommendation is to approve the application.
RECOMMENDATION
2.37 Subject to no adverse comments being received from the Essex County Council?s Head of Environmental Planning concerning minerals and waste, it is proposed that the Committee RESOLVES to APPROVE the application, subject to the following conditions:-
1 SC4B ? Time limits standard
2 No floodlights or other means of artificial illumination shall be provided/installed to the fence post/columns and/or operated, whether or not in association with the use of the site permitted.
3 Any of the trees adjoining the bund area at the approximate positions of section A-A and section D-D as shown on the approved plan Drawing No. LR01-100 and dying before 21 January 2014 shall be replaced by such species as shall be submitted to the Local Planning in writing. The replacement planting shall be carried out in accordance with such details as may be agreed by the Local Planning Authority within the first planting season (October to February inclusive) following agreement of such details.
The third application is just about unique- creating a massive coastal nature reserve: There is no recommendation yet – the officers report is still being completed:
TITLE:
09/000010/CPO THE IMPORTATION BY SEA OF 7.5 MILLION CUBIC
METRES OF HIGH QUALITY RECOVERED INERT MATERIAL TO ACHIEVE, BY PHASED EXTRACTION AND LANDRAISING, A CHANGE OF USE FROM AGRICULTURAL LAND TO 677 HECTARES OF COASTAL NATURE RESERVE
PRINCIPALLY COMPRISING MUDFLATS, SALTMARSH, COASTAL LAGOONS, BRACKISH MARSH, COASTAL GRAZING MARSH, DRIER GRASS CAPABLE OF DEVELOPING NEW SALTMARSH AS SEA LEVELS RISE, TOGETHER WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF 5 BIRD HIDES, CAR PARK AND ASSOCIATED OFF SHORE UNLOADING
FACILITY, CONVEYOR AND PIPELINE, MATERIAL HANDLING AREA, SEA WALL ENGINEERING WORKS AND MODIFICATION TO FOOTPATH NUMBER 21, TO BE COMPLETED BY 2019.
LAND AT NORTH END OF WALLASEA ISLAND ROCHFORD
APPLICANT: ROYAL SOCIETY FOR THE PROTECTION OF BIRDS
Finally, the fourth application is for a shop and six flats at 74-78 West Street, Rochford – recommended for approval.