Agenda and minutes

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the previous meeting.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 28 June 2023 be approved as a correct record.

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Tary, Fairhurst, Hudson, Chandler and Torra. Councillors Green, Baker, Dwight, Proudfoot and Ritter attended as their respective substitutes. Councillor Stevens attended for part of the meeting online and was therefore unable to vote.

To receive any declarations of interest.

Councillors Blacker and Baker declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 5 of the agenda, The Air Baloon, 60 Brighton Road, as they were members of Horley Town Council and Councillor Blacker was a member of its Planning Committee.

Councillor Cooper declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 6, 49, 51, and 53 Shelvers Way, as her sister was a friend of the developer, however Councillor Cooper confirmed that she has never had any communications with the developer.

Councillor Blacker declared a pecuniary interest in item 7, Glenri, 48 Upfield, as this was his property, he left the room for this item.

To note the addendum tabled at the meeting which provides an update on the agenda of planning applications before the Committee.

PLANNING APPLICATIONS:

NOTES:

1.    The order in which the applications will be considered at the meeting may be subject to change.

2.    Plans are reproduced in the agenda for reference purposes only and are not reproduced to scale.  Accordingly dimensions should not be taken from these plans and the originals should be viewed for detailed information. Most drawings in the agenda have been scanned, and reproduced smaller than the original, thus affecting image quality.

To consider the following applications :

RESOLVED that the addendum be noted.

Demolition of existing building and redevelopment of the site to provide a Class E(a) retail foodstore with associated parking, access and landscaping.

The Committee considered an application at The Air Balloon, 60 Brighton Road, Horley for the demolition of existing building and redevelopment of the site to provide a Class E(a) retail foodstore with associated parking, access and landscaping.

Adam Forsdick, the Regional Head of Property for Lidl, spoke in support of the application, stating that during a cost-of-living crisis, the need for local access to a discount food-store was more vital than ever. In their consultation over 91.5% of respondents confirmed they supported the proposal to relocate. The application was policy compliant except for the heritage aspect and members were asked to consider the material benefits for approving this application, as well as uphold the views of the public majority.

In terms of the heritage asset only a very small part of the existing building was from the late 18th Century. Externally it had been subject to unsympathetic extensions and internally there were no heritage features remaining. If Heritage England’s criteria for local listings were applied, this building would not meet the test. Lidl attempted to incorporate elements of the original façade into its proposal, but this left the development unviable. The site’s history would be honoured through on-site signage or other artwork. The war memorial was subject to harm due to its location close to a busy road and industrial units. The elevations on the store had been softened to tie in more sensitively with local surroundings. More trees had been added to improve screening and this could be further reviewed to maximise tree screening and biodiversity if the application was overturned. Greene King’s letter to the LPA confirmed that the premises would close irrespective of this application. Lidl’s current store was not fit for purpose and continued trading could not be guaranteed; other underperforming stores had been closed. If this application could be consented because of its economic regeneration benefits, and additional jobs, it was requested that the Committee moved a recommendation for approval.

Russell Ingram, the Store Manager from Waitrose, Horley, spoke in objection to the application, stating that Waitrose had been trading in Horley town centre for several decades and played an important role in retaining local spending and supporting the wider town centre through linked shopping trips. Waitrose had serious concerns about the impact this application would have on the vitality and viability of Horley town centre. Changing patterns of shopping meant that town centres were increasingly reliant on supermarkets to support their overall vitality. The removal of Lidl from the town centre would reduce spending and visits to the town centre. The town centre was currently underperforming and Horley had a higher vacancy rate than other towns in the borough and by drawing further money away from the town the situation would worsen. There was a clear risk that Horley town centre would experience a significant adverse impact, which was contrary to the objectives of national and local planning policy. The applicants identified that the only interest they have had in the existing Lidl unit,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

Erection of 2 dwellings. Erection of 2 - four-bed chalet bungalows with associated parking and landscaping and creation of new access drive onto Shelvers Way on the land the rear of 49, 51 and 53 Shelvers Way. As amended on 08/03/2023 and on 12/06/2023.

The Committee considered an application at 49, 51 and 53 Shelvers Way, Tadworth for the Erection of 2 dwellings. Erection of 2 - four-bed chalet bungalows with associated parking and landscaping and creation of new access drive onto Shelvers Way on the land the rear of 49, 51 and 53 Shelvers Way. As amended on 08/03/2023 and on 12/06/2023.

Mandy O’Brien, a local resident, spoke in objection to the application explaining that she had been fighting this application for 8 months and having analysed the submissions there were many factual errors. There were a number of concerns regarding excessive surface water, with the neighbouring house and part of the development having flooded internally. The SuDS condition offered could worsen the situation. The Planning team has tried to work with the objector to correct some errors, however, not enough had been corrected to make a fair and objective decision. The Highways report stated that visibility splays were to be 3m x 3m, however the architect's plan showed 2m x 2m. In 6.21 of the report, it stated that there were no road restrictions in Shelvers Way, however there were many. A report in the addendum did not cover the shading arc and this would impact the gardens and the proposed 2 houses, this especially covered plot 2 which would only receive 2 hours of sunlight. This was against policy DES1, point 5. There was concern regarding trees with TPOs and that trees would be harmed during construction. This was not a plot for development and there was concern regarding residents’ quality of life and protected woodlands and wildlife.

Peter Leslie, a local resident, spoke in objection to the application stating that his family moved to the road 13 years ago, attracted to the large open gardens however times had changed, and it was becoming a harder place to live. The proposal was not for chalet bungalows, but large four-bedroomed houses. Trees had already been felled on the site and more would need to be felled. There was a single access road proposed for two homes with large footprints. There was concern regarding surface water flooding and for the wildlife corridor, in particular Surrey Wildlife Trust was concerned about floodlighting and the harm on bats. The properties would be 7m in height and this would cause overlooking. There had been hundreds of objections to this development. These properties would be worth more than a £1million each and Tadworth did not need more properties like this.

Caroline Pinnock, the Developer, spoke in support of the application, stating that the population in the borough was set to increase by 5% between 2022 and 2027. The infilling of brownfield sites such as this formed an important part of the strategy to meet the urgent need for new housing. The access drive was comparable to that approved on appeal at 62-64 Shelvers Way. SCC Highways supported the proposed access. The amenity of the neighbouring properties had been carefully considered. An Environmental Noise Survey was submitted as  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

Proposed single storey rear extension.

The Committee considered an application at Glenri, 48 Upfield, Horley for a proposed single storey rear extension.

RESOLVED that planning permission be GRANTED subject to conditions as per the recommendation.

To inform members of the Q1 2023/24 Development Management performance against a range of indicators.

The Development Manager explained that overall performance has held up very well despite some difficult operating circumstances with staff turnover in the Technical Support and Planning Applications Teams. Recruitment to the vacant Planning Technician role and TSU roles helped improve performance.

Performance for Major and Non major applications continued to be good, with targets being met.

In respect of major applications that were determined in the targeted timeframe for quarter 1, 100% were determined within this timeframe against a target of 60%. For non-major applications in quarter 1, 93% were determined within this timeframe against a target of 70%, up from 82%.

When combined both had a significant decrease in days to decision, down to 82 days but still sat above the target. A combination of decreasing the backlog and staffing continued to prove challenging in bringing the days to decision to within target.

In respect of appeals performance this had not been as strong with:

·         nine appeal decisions to note for the quarter;

·         with four dismissed and five allowed.

This poorer start to the year meant that 44% of appeals were dismissed against a target of 70%. While this was only a single quarter it was difficult to define any trends or underlying themes that required exploring and management.

It was noted that three of the five that were allowed had been Committee decisions and two upon the same site at Redhill Ambulance Station. A third was also a Committee item for a single house at 5 Carlton Road, Redhill. Without those decisions the appeals would have met the target.

With regard to enforcement, the Enforcement service continued to see high volume of work with numbers of reported breeches remaining high. There were a similar number of cases reported in quarter 1 as last year, but overall the cases on hand have decreased which was pleasing as the team had reduced in size due to a contractor finishing their term.

In respect of workloads, the number of cases determined increased due to new staff, however work on hand has yet to return to previous levels when staffing was shorter, but progress has been made in that regard. Likewise, the time taken to registration has also decreased in recent months as the new staff in the TSU team have had an impact. Shorter registration would help days to decision and work on hand. 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

To consider any item(s) which, in the opinion of the Chairman, should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There was none.