Agenda item

Report of the Service Lead – Infrastructure, Planning and Development recommending that conditional authority be refused in respect of an application for a proposed development at the above address, attached.

The Panel considered the report of the Head of Green City and Infrastructure recommending that planning permission be refused in respect of an application for the proposed development at the above address.

Demolition of former car showroom and outbuildings and the erection of two blocks comprising 35 apartments, with associated parking, access, and landscaping (Resubmission 21/00324/FUL).

Councillor Windle was taken ill and did not attend this item.

Katherine Barbour, Simon Reynier (City of Southampton Society) (local residents/objecting) and Richard Carr, Fortitudo (Agent), were present and with the consent of the Chair, addressed the meeting.

The presenting officer reported the following updates: Paragraph 6.4.4 should have read ‘Osborne Road South’ instead of Osborne Road North’; and Paragraph 6.4.3 should have referred to ‘74 Belmont Road’ not ‘47 Belmont Road’.

During discussion on the item, two motions to amend the recommendation by the inclusion of additional reasons for refusal in respect of the pedestrian entrances and accessibility, as set out in full below, was proposed and seconded.  Upon being put to the vote, the amendments to the recommendation were carried.

The Panel then considered the recommendation to refuse planning permission. Upon being put to the vote the recommendation as amended was carried unanimously.

RESOLVED to refuse planning permission.

Reason for Refusal: Overdevelopment

(i)  The layout, scale, bulk and massing of the development would appear unduly dominant within the St Denys Road and Osborne Road South street scenes and would be out of keeping with the character and appearance of the area.

(ii)  The proposed layout and excessive level of site coverage (with buildings and hard surfacing exceeding 50% of the site) is symptomatic of a proposal that results in an overdevelopment of the site that is out of character with the established pattern of development within the vicinity.

(iii)  The layout of the buildings, due to the positioning of habitable windows on and close to neighbouring boundaries (74 Belmont Road) results in poor outlook that would adversely impact neighbouring occupiers.

(i)  Due to the absence of sufficient private and useable amenity space that is directly accessible by all occupants of the development, including those with a disability, the proposal fails to provide an acceptable residential environment for occupants of the development. This is particularly having regard to the two-bedroom units of the development which could provide accommodation for families with small children.

Additional reasons for refusal:

(v)  The location of the entrances to both blocks, given their distance from the road frontage, does not provide a safe nor convenient access for all users.

(vi)  Given the land level changes and the chosen design for block A, including the absence of a lift, the scheme fails to meet the day-to-day needs of all users to enable those occupiers and their visitors that are less mobile to access either the units nor the shared communal amenity terrace.  As such the scheme does not provide full access and fails in its duties under the Equalities Act, as supported by the Development Plan detailed below.

Overall, the proposal would appear as an over-intensive form of development that would fail to add to the overall quality of the area or function well for its potential residents and would unacceptably affect the amenity of neighbouring residents. The development would be contrary to saved policies SDP1(i), SDP4, SDP6, SDP7 SDP9, SDP10, SDP11 and H7 of the City of Southampton Local Plan (2015) and saved policies CS5, CS13 and CS18 of the Local Development Framework Core Strategy (2015), sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Council's Residential Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document (September 2006) with particular reference to paragraphs 2.2.1 - 2.2.10, 2.6, 3.9.1 - 3.9.5, 3.10.24 -3.10.25, 4.4 - 4.4.4, 5.1.16 - 5.1.17, 5.2.12 and sections 8 and 10 and the relevant guidance contained within the National Planning Policy Framework 2021.