Site address:                  4 Bladon Close, Oxford, OX2 8AD

Proposal:                        Demolition of existing dwellinghouse and garage. Erection of 5 x 2 bedroom flats (Use Class C3). Provision of amenity space, bin and cycle stores.          

Reason at Committee:     This application was called in by Councillors Wade, Landell-Mills, Gant, Goddard, Roz Smith, Altaf Khan due to concerns around design, car parking, neighbouring amenities, legal covenants, land subsistence, asbestos, drainage, access, bin storage and sustainability.

Recommendation:

The Oxford City 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 (21/00672) for planning permission for the demolition of existing dwellinghouse and garage; erection of 5 x 2 bedroom flats (Use Class C3); provision of amenity space, bin and cycle stores.

The application was before the Committee as it had been called in by Councillors Wade, Landell-Mills, Gant, Goddard, Roz Smith, Altaf Khan due to concerns around design, car parking, neighbouring amenities, legal covenants, land subsistence, asbestos, drainage, access, bin storage and sustainability.

The Planning Officer presented the report and proposed a revision to the wording of Condition 9: Ecology.

Liz Sharp (neighbour), Ian Robinson (local resident) and Councillor Andrew Gant (ward councillor) spoke against the application. 

In response to questions from the Committee planning officers advised that the Neighbourhood Plan policies referenced by the public speakers were in fact aspirational statements or community policies which carried less weight than the policies in the Oxford Local Plan and NPPF.

The Committee suggested that, for a sustainable development of this nature, it would be desirable for the proposed cycle storage to be designed to accommodate larger electric models and cargo bikes, recognising that this was not something that could be secured by condition as it went beyond the policy requirements of the Oxford Local Plan. 

The Committee noted the concerns expressed by the public speaker about overlooking and sought advice from the planning officers on what mitigation measures might be reasonable to include by condition.   Planning officers suggested adding conditions for the window treatment on the eastern elevation to require a front facing oriel window on the first floor and non-opening windows on the eastern elevation of the mansard roof.

After debate and on being proposed, seconded and put to the vote, the Committee agreed to include an amendment to the officer recommendation to include further conditions on window treatment.

On being proposed, seconded and put to the vote, the Committee agreed with the officer’s recommendation to approve the application, subject to the revision of the wording of Condition 9, and the inclusion of two further conditions on window treatment as detailed above.

The Oxford City Planning Committee resolved 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, with the amended condition 9 and additional 2 conditions regarding windows referred to above, and grant planning permission.
2. agree to delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to: