Site address:                   42 Park Town, Oxford, OX2 6SJ

Proposal:                        Amalgamation of ground dwelling and basement flat to form one dwellinghouse, erection of a two storey side extension to basement and ground, insertion of lightwells to the front and rear, associated landscaping to front and rear gardens, replacement railings to front boundary and alterations to fenestration. (Amended Plans)    

Reason at Committee      This application was called in by Councillors Fry, Munkonge, Pressel, Tanner and Upton due to concerns of overdevelopment, resulting in harm to the conservation area, and the impact on the amenity of neighbours.

Recommendation:

The West Area Planning Committee is recommended to:

1.       approve the application for the reasons given in the report and subject to the required planning conditions set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission.

2.       agree to delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to:

·       finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary.

The Committee considered an application (19/02141/FUL) for planning permission for the amalgamation of ground dwelling and basement flat to form one dwellinghouse, erection of a two storey side extension to basement and ground, insertion of lightwells to the front and rear, associated landscaping to front and rear gardens, replacement railings to front boundary and alterations to fenestration. (Amended Plans).

The application was called in by Councillors Fry, Munkonge, Pressel, Tanner and Upton due to concerns of overdevelopment, resulting in harm to the conservation area, and the impact on the amenity of neighbours.

The Planning Officer presented the report. He apologised for some labelling errors on the slides (referencing No.44 rather than No.42) which he corrected as he went through the presentation. He explained that the application originally included repairs and alterations to the roof which were omitted in the final proposal and that the original plans also erroneously included the replacement of the existing garage and the removal of the lawson cypress tree in the front garden. These errors have been rectified in the final plans and did not form part of the application.

Caroline Grange spoke against the application. 

Simon Sharpe, Kieron Roberts and Patrick Maguire, on behalf of the applicant, spoke in favour of the application.

The Committee was satisfied that the information set out in the officer report addressed the concerns raised in the call-in about overdevelopment, potential harm to the conservation area, and the impact on the amenity of neighbours.

The Committee discussion centred on the fact that the application, if approved, would be in contravention of Policy HP1 of the Sites and Housing Plan as it would result in the loss of the basement dwelling. The Committee acknowledged the importance of Policy HP1 but felt that on balance its significance was outweighed by the considerations set out in the officer report, in particular the fact that the existing basement flat provided poor quality accommodation and sub-standard living space and would be considered unsuitable for habitation in the current policy and legislative context. On balance the Committee concluded that this was a balanced judgement and that, while substantial weight should be given to Policy HP1, the loss of the basement dwelling was acceptable in the overall context of the improvements resulting from the development.

After debate and on being proposed, seconded and put to the vote, the Committee agreed with the officer’s recommendation to approve the application.

The West Area Planning Committee resolved to:

1.         approve the application for the reasons given in the report and subject to the 12 required planning conditions and 3 informatives set out in section 12 of the report and grant planning permission.

2.         delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to:

·       finalise the recommended conditions as set out in the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary.