Agenda item

Agenda item

16/02745/CT3: Seacourt Park And Ride, Botley Road, Oxford

Site address:                   Seacourt Park And Ride, Botley Road, Oxford 

 

Proposal:                         Extension to the existing Seacourt Park and Ride to accommodate new car parking, a single storey building to provide a waiting area and toilets for customers, cycle parking, lighting, CCTV, ticket machines, new pedestrian and cycle access, landscaping together with reorganisation of the layout of existing car parking spaces, repositioning of turning circle, bus pickup and drop-off and other works incidental to the development. (additional information)  

 

Reason at Committee:   This application was determined at the West Area Planning Committee meeting on 12 December 2017. That decision has been called-in to the Planning Review Committee by Councillors Cook, Pressel, Fooks, Malik, Simmons, Brandt, Gant, Wade, Goddard, Wilkinson, Altaf-Khan and Wolff.

 

Recommendation:

 

The Planning Review Committee is recommended to:

 

(a)      Approve the application for the reasons given in the report and subject to:

1. Decision subject to confirmation from the Secretary of State that the application is not required to be ‘called in’ in accordance with The Town and Country Planning (Consultation) (England) Direction 2009;

 

(b)      Agree to delegate authority to the Head of Planning, Sustainable Development and Regulatory Services to:

1. Finalise the recommended conditions as set out in section 11 of the committee report in appendix 1 including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning, Sustainable Development and Regulatory Services considers reasonably necessary.

Minutes:

Adrian Rosser made a video recording of parts of the discussion of this item.

 

The Committee considered an application (16/02745/CT3) from the City Council for planning permission for an extension to the existing Seacourt Park and Ride to accommodate new car parking spaces, a single storey building to provide a waiting area and toilets for customers, cycle parking, lighting, CCTV, ticket machines, new pedestrian and cycle access, landscaping together with reorganisation of the layout of existing car parking spaces, repositioning of turning circle, bus pickup and drop-off and other works incidental to the development.

 

On 13 December 2017 the West Area Planning Committee determined to approve the application.  This decision had been called-in to the Planning Review Committee on grounds that: the decision to approve the application on the Chair’s casting vote did not take sufficient account of the fact that the application is not compliant with the National Planning Policy Framework and does not constitute ‘essential infrastructure’ as it will not remain operational and safe for users in times of flood as required by National Planning Policy Guidance.

 

The Planning Officer gave a detailed presentation which illustrated the key points made in the report regarding:

  1. Green Belt
  2. Flood Risk

3.     Transport

4.     Ecology

 

The Planning Officer referred the Committee to the report which set out a detailed assessment of the application against the relevant national and local development plan policies, including the National Planning Policy Framework.  The Planning Officer said that, for the reasons set out in the report, officers remained convinced that the application did constitute “essential transport infrastructure” as Oxford’s park and ride system is an integral part of the city’s transport policy and the Oxford Core Strategy and Local Plan have a presumption in favour of maintaining the role of park and ride sites including providing additional capacity.

 

The Planning Officer clarified that Highways England had raised no objections to the application.

 

In reference to an email that had been sent to members of the Planning Review Committee by the Mid-Counties Co-operative the Planning Officer explained that the Mid-Counties Co-operative site was not considered a viable alternative primarily because it forms an important part of the Oxford Flood Alliance Scheme. The Environment Agency had confirmed that they were looking to use Compulsory Purchase powers to secure the land in the event they are unable to work with the landowner. The use of this space for park and ride would compromise those plans which would have significant public benefits for the city as a whole. This would conflict with the advice in the National Planning Policy Framework which seeks to safeguard land that is required for future flood management.

 

The Chair increased the speaking time to 12 minutes for both sides to allow all speakers adequate time.

 

Adrian Rosser (local resident), Debbie Dance (Oxford Preservation Trust), Liz Sawyer (Oxford Flood Alliance), and Councillor Colin Cook (ward councillor and member of West Area Planning Committee) spoke against the application.

 

Caroline Green (Oxford City Council, applicant), Michael Lowndes (WYG, agent) and Paul Walker (Oxford Bus Company) spoke in favour of the application. Ian Hilton (WYG) and Steve Boden (WYG) also answered questions from the Committee relating to flood assessment and mitigation measures and transport matters.

 

In reaching its decision, the Committee considered all the information put before it including the officer’s report and presentation, updated since the application was considered at West Area Planning Committee, and the answers to questions given by officers and the public speakers. The Committee were advised of the need to give greater weight to the adopted policies set out in the Oxford Core Strategy 2016 and Oxford Local Plan 2001-2016 rather than the County Council’s Transport Strategy, which was not an adopted plan and thereby carries less weight.

 

During questions, and in debate, the Committee focussed on the arguments for and against the following issues:

  • whether the application meets the NPPF test for granting planning permission for inappropriate development within the Green Belt on the basis of very special circumstances
  • whether the application meets the requirements of the NPPF exception test for Essential Infrastructure within Flood Zone 3b
  • whether the applicant had fully explored all possible options for alternative sites; for different solutions to provide additional capacity within the current site; for measures to encourage customers to use other park and ride sites in preference to Seacourt park and ride
  • whether concerns about ground water flooding on the application site would be adequately addressed by the proposed flood mitigation measures

·       the accuracy and validity of the transport modelling data and capacity assumptions used in the Transport Assessment when compared with anecdotal evidence of vacant spaces and recent media reports, drawing on official figures, showing reduced demand for Seacourt park and ride

 

In determining this application a majority of the Committee were satisfied that there was a proven need for an extension to the Seacourt park and ride to meet current and future demand and that the public benefit outweighed the harm caused to the Green Belt.

 

On the basis of the evidence presented a minority of the Committee were not persuaded that the case for the application had been made with regard to immediate need /demand; special circumstances for inappropriate development in the Green Belt; or the requirements of the exception test for “Essential Transport Infrastructure”.

 

A motion to approve the officer’s recommendation to grant planning permission with the conditions as set out in the report was moved and seconded.

 

On being put to the vote a majority of the Committee agreed with the officer recommendation to grant planning permission.

 

The West Area Planning Committee resolved to:

(a)  Agree to grant planning permission for the reasons given in the report and subject to:

1.   Decision subject to confirmation from the Secretary of State that the application is not required to be ‘called in’ in accordance with The Town and Country Planning (Consultation) (England) Direction 2009;

(b) Agree to delegate authority to the Head of Planning, Sustainable Development and Regulatory Services to:

1.     Finalise the 23 recommended conditions and 2 informatives as set out in section 11 of the report including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning, Sustainable Development and Regulatory Services considers reasonably necessary.

Supporting documents: