Agenda item

To consider an application for development of 1.2 hectares of land by the erection of 33 no. dwellings (outline application including access and layout) at land adjacent to Dolwar, Llanrhaeadr, Denbigh (copy attached).

The Vice Chair, Councillor Alan James took the Chair for this item as the Chair, Councillor Joe Welch was the Local Member.

 

An application was submitted for the development of 1.2 hectares of land by the erection of 33 no. dwellings (outline application including access and layout) at land adjacent to Dolwar, Llanrhaeadr, Denbigh.

 

Public Speakers –

 

Mr. E. Williams (Against) – objected to the application on behalf of the Community Council on the grounds of drainage/flooding concerns; highway safety; negative impact on the Welsh Language, and lack of capacity in the local school.  It was submitted that the application would have a negative effect on the local community.

 

Ms. S. Edwards (For) – responded to issues raised including measures to address highway concerns and drainage/flooding concerns with no objection from statutory consultees.  The site was earmarked in Local Development Plan (LDP) for housing and Welsh language impact was assessed at that time and considered acceptable – the development would provide much needed housing and help grow the community.

 

General Debate – Councillor Ann Davies reported upon the Site Inspection Panel meeting on 8 February 2019 and sought further assurances regarding highway safety and local flooding/drainage concerns.

 

Councillor Joe Welch (Local Member) provided some background to the application and it was noted that the site opposite was currently being developed for 15 houses.    The indicative dwelling numbers in the LDP for the site opposite had been 10 houses and 23 for the current application site, hence granting the application would result in 15 and 33 houses respectively across the two sites which was an increase of nearly 50% on the indicative allocation.  Since adoption of the LDP, TAN20 had been issued advising that applicants were no longer required to demonstrate the impact on the Welsh language as it would have been assessed at allocation stage.  Councillor Welch argued that it should be taken into account given that –

 

(1)       circumstances had changed significantly since adoption of the LDP with nearly 50% more housing being proposed for the area

(2)       the application had been submitted in 2016 prior to the issue of TAN20, and

(3)       the Community and Linguistic Assessment provided by the applicant showed the development would result in a decrease in the number of Welsh speakers from 50.03% to 49.1%, leading to a majority Welsh speaking village becoming a minority Welsh speaking village in a language sensitive area. Reference was also made to the validity of the positive Welsh language comments given the nature of questions asked as part of the assessment process.

 

In making his case for refusal Councillor Welch argued that Policy RD5 in the LDP should carry significant weight relative to TAN20.  Policy RD5 stated ‘development could be refused if its size, scale or location would cause significant harm to the character and language balance of the community’.  Councillor Welch also agreed with other considerations raised including the lack of capacity in the local school and likely further pressures on school transport together with highways and flooding concerns.  However he proposed that the application be refused on the grounds of significant harm to the Welsh language which he did not consider had been suitably mitigated and had been further increased since the inclusion of the site in the LDP.

 

Councillor Emrys Wynne agreed that there would be an unacceptable impact on the Welsh language and highlighted the need to protect communities, particularly given the decrease in the number of Welsh speakers generally.  He advocated the use of the proposed mitigation measures for the language for all new developments.

 

Officers responded to the issues raised as follows –

 

Flooding/Drainage – soakaway drainage considered an acceptable means of dealing with surface water from the development given the ground conditions and a clear drainage strategy had been put forward as part of the development.  Natural Resources Wales and the Council’s Drainage Engineer had raised no objection to that strategy.  Officers had suggested conditions requiring further details of drainage relating to the highways and the general soakaway layout for the site

 

Welsh Language – the Community and Linguistic Assessment was intended to give a broad impression of the impact of a development on the community covering a number of elements including Welsh language.  An overview of that assessment process and scoring matrix was provided which had been based on the Council’s template in its Supplementary Guidance.  The Welsh language element had been assessed as having a negative impact however the statistics were open to interpretation. Councillor Welch’s point was that on the assumptions made in the Assessment, the proportion of Welsh speakers relative to the population of Llanrhaeadr may decrease by 1%, but the development was likely to generate an additional 21 Welsh speakers, which could be considered a positive factor.  It was also important to consider that the site had been allocated for housing in the LDP following consideration of the likely impact of the development on the Welsh language at that time.  Whilst it was accepted that the development could lead to change, it had to be considered whether that change was so significant in terms of impact on language that it justified refusal of planning permission.

 

Highways – concerns had been raised regarding the local highway network and how safe access to the site could be provided.  As part of the application visibility splays had been provided and the existing 30mph speed limit would be repositioned along with a new footway verge along the frontage with associated street lighting and drainage which would be controlled through a Highways Legal Agreement.  Consequently it was considered that the proposal demonstrated the existing infrastructure was capable of accommodating the development and included sufficient improvements and mitigation to allow safe access subject to the relevant conditions being imposed.  It was not considered there were sound reasons  for refusal on highway grounds.  Data showed one traffic accident with injury during the period January 2013 – December 2017.  New drainage was proposed on the site which would improve the situation and be closely monitored and controlled via legal agreement should the application be approved.

 

During the ensuing debate members sought further clarification on the planning issues raised and also questioned the impact on education and the position in terms of the affordable housing element.  Officers responded as follows –

 

·         Education – concerns had been raised regarding the capacity of the local school and lack of foresight in that regard with likely additional pressures on school transport provision.  It was confirmed that the education contribution would be ring-fenced for the community area and agreed that it would be useful for departments to look ahead and provide a more robust input into the LDP at the development stage in order to mitigate future issues

·         Drainage – the developer would be responsible for adopting the drainage system and ongoing maintenance costs

·         Affordable Housing – there was a clear need identified for affordable housing in the area and the application was in line with the Council’s existing policy in that regard which was currently 10% provision

·         Welsh Language – phasing of developments had been discussed when allocating sites and could be introduced providing there were valid reasons to do so

·         Highways – the size and scale of the development did not warrant a transport assessment for which the usual threshold was 100 dwellings; taking into account other nearby developments there was still considered to be spare highway capacity.

 

At the close of debate officers referred to the material planning considerations discussed by members and whether they considered there was sufficient evidence to justify refusal of planning permission in this case.  Given that the site had been allocated for housing in the LDP and having taken into account the relevant policies and guidance, officers strongly recommended that the application be approved.

 

Proposal – Councillor Joe Welch proposed, seconded by Councillor Bob Murray, that the application be refused on the grounds that significant harm would be caused to the Welsh language balance of the community.

 

Counter Proposal – Councillor Tony Thomas proposed the officer recommendation to grant the application, seconded by Brian Jones.

 

VOTE:

GRANT – 11

REFUSE – 7

ABSTAIN – 1

 

RESOLVED that permission be GRANTED in accordance with officer recommendations as detailed within the report and supplementary papers.

 

At this point (11.20 a.m.) the meeting adjourned for a refreshment break.