The Committee considered an application (19/02816/FUL) for planning permission for the demolition of existing garage and erection of 1 x 4-bed dwelling and 1 x 5-bed dwelling (Use Class C3); provision of amenity space, car parking and bin and cycle stores; associated landscaping and boundary treatments (amended plans).

The application was previously considered at West Area Planning Committee on 9 February 2021 where the Committee resolved to grant planning permission subject to a legal agreement. The application was brought back to committee as the applicant has not provided an acceptable legal agreement or undertaking, and has not provided a costs undertaking in respect of the Council’s legal costs associated with the said agreement or undertaking. .

The Planning Officer presented the report and apologised for the fact that an incorrect version of Appendix 2 (Report to the West Area Planning Committee 9 February 2021) had been included in the agenda.  This Appendix was for reference only and a correct version had been circulated to the Committee in advance of the meeting.

The Committee noted that the application had previously been presented to the West Area Planning Committee in February 2021 with a recommendation to grant planning permission on the basis that the applicant would enter into a legal agreement with the Council which would preclude them from implementing both the extant permission and the permission associated with these proposals. However, following discussions with the Council planning and legal officers the applicant had subsequently failed to provide an acceptable unilateral undertaking or legal agreement and the associated legal costs undertaking.

In reaching its decision, the Committee considered all the information put before it and noted that their decision would supersede the previous decision taken in February 2021.

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

The Oxford City Planning Committee resolved to:

1.     refuse the application for the reason given in paragraph 1.1.2 of the report and set out below and to delegate authority to the Head of Planning Services to:

·       finalise the reason for refusal including such refinements, amendments, additions and/or deletions as the Head of Planning Services considers reasonably necessary.

1.               The recommended reason for refusal is as follows:

The application site is already subject to an extant permission for the erection of a single dwellinghouse (19/02817/FUL), which, if implemented, would be located to the rear of the site. The two dwellings proposed as part of this application would be located to the front of the site and therefore the implementation of this permission would mean that it would not be impossible to implement permission 19/02817/FUL. Therefore, although the proposed development would be acceptable if implemented on its own, the Council has no way to prevent all three dwellings associated with the planning permissions 19/02816/FUL and 19/02817/FUL; the implementation of both permissions would give rise to an unacceptable arrangement on the site which would include an adverse impact on residential amenity and an overdevelopment of the site and failing to accord with Policies RE1, DH1, H14 and H16 of the Oxford Local Plan 2036 or paragraph 127 of the NPPF. The applicant has refused to enter a legal agreement where they agree to only implement one permission and therefore this application must be refused.