Agenda item

APP/20/01435: Mill House, BLAKELEY ROAD, RABY MERE, CH63 0LZ - Alterations to existing boundary fencing and entrance gates.

Minutes:

The Director of Regeneration and Place submitted the above application for consideration.

 

A Ward Councillor addressed the Committee.

 

It was moved by Councillor M Jordan and seconded by Councillor A Gardner that the application be refused for the following reason:

 

Having regard to the sites location at the edge of the urban area and taking into account that the site is visible from the surrounding open countryside, having regards to the visual impact of the proposals, it is considered that the proposed railings do not form appropriate boundary treatment in terms of the visual amenities of the area and the character of the surrounding landscape.  The proposals therefore do not comply with Policy LA7 (Criteria for Development at the Urban Fringe) of the adopted Wirral Unitary Development Plan.

 

The motion was put and lost (4:6). 

 

It was further moved by the Chair and seconded by Councillor P Stuart that the application be approved with the following conditions.

 

Resolved (6:4) – That the application be approved with the following conditions:

 

1. The development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of 3 years from the date of this permission.

 

2. The development hereby permitted shall be carried out in accordance with the approved plans received by the local planning authority on (26 October, 2020 and 16 December, 2020) and listed as follows: (drawing refs: 'Proposed Main Entrance Gates' and 'Proposed Rear Entrance Gate and Fencing', dated: 16 December, 2020; and 'Proposed Site Plan', dated: 26 October, 2020)

 

3. The existing 2.4m high close boarded timber fence shall be removed and replaced by the approved 1.8m wall mounted railings no later than 1 month from the date the application was granted. 

 

4. Development shall not commence until full details of the boundary treatment have been submitted for written approval by the local planning authority prior to the commencement of works. These shall include cross sectional drawings illustrating the thickness of the railings at 1:1 or 1:2, cross section drawings of the boundary treatment (wall and railings) scale 1:20 and elevational section details at 1:20 scale (or similar) of the wall itself. The development shall be implemented in accordance with the approved details.

 

5. No works or development shall take place until a scheme for the protection of the retained trees - The Tree protection plan (section 5.5, BS 5837:2012, Trees in relation to design, demolition and construction - Recommendations) has been agreed in writing with the LPA.  This scheme shall include:

 

a). the details of each retained tree as required at section. 4.4 of BS5837 in a separate schedule;

b). a plan or relevant drawings, including proposed site layout plans, to a scale and level of accuracy appropriate to the proposal that shows constraints posed by existing trees (section 5.2 BS 5837), the position, crown spread and Root Protection Area (section 4.6 of BS5837) of every retained tree on site and on neighbouring or nearby ground to the site in relation to the approved plans and particulars. The positions of all trees to be removed shall be indicated on this plan;

c). a schedule of tree works for all the retained trees in paragraphs (a) and (b) above, specifying pruning and other remedial or preventative work, whether for physiological, hazard abatement, aesthetic or operational reasons. All tree works shall be carried out in accordance with BS3998, 2010, Tree work-Recommendations.

 

An arboricultural method statement (section 6 BS 5837) containing;

 

d). the details and positions (shown on the plan at paragraph (a) above) of the Tree Protection Barriers (section 6.2 of BS5837), identified separately where required for different phases of construction work (e.g. demolition, construction, hard landscaping). The Tree Protection Barriers must be erected prior to each construction phase commencing and remain in place, and undamaged for the duration of that phase. No works shall take place on the next phase until the Tree Protection Barriers are repositioned for that phase;

e). the details and positions (shown on the plan at paragraph (a) above) of the Ground Protection Zones (para 6.2.3 of BS5837);

f). the details and positions (shown on the plan at paragraph (a) above) of the Construction Exclusion Zones (section 6 of BS5837);

g). the details of any changes in levels or the position of any proposed excavations within 5 metres of the Root Protection Area (para. 5.5.6 of BS5837) of any retained tree, including those on neighbouring or nearby ground;

h). the details of any special engineering required to accommodate the protection of retained trees (section 7 of BS5837), (e.g. in connection with foundations, bridging, water features, surfacing);

i). the details of the working methods to be employed with regard to site logistics and storage, including an allowance for slopes, water courses and enclosures, with particular regard to ground compaction and phytotoxicity;

j). the details of tree protection measures for site works, landscaping operations and management (section 8 of BS5837);

k). the timing of the various phases of the works or development in the context of the tree protection measures.

 

The development shall then be carried out strictly in accordance with the approved Arboricultural Method Statement.

 

6. The following activities must not be carried out under any circumstances:

a).  No fires to be lit within 20 metres of existing trees and shrubs to be retained.

b).  Storage of removed topsoil should be located outside of the Root Protection Areas of retained trees and away from those parts of the site allocated for soft landscaping.

c).  No equipment, signage, fencing, tree protection barriers, materials, components, vehicles or structures shall be attached to or supported by a retained tree.

d).  No builder’s debris or other materials to be stored within the Root Protection Areas.

e).  No mixing of cement, associate additives, chemicals, fuels, tar and other oil-based liquids and powders shall occur within 10 metres of any tree Root Protection Area. A dedicated washout area shall be a used and located not within 10 metres of any Root Protection 

f).  No alterations or variations to the approved works or tree protection schemes shall be carried out without the prior written approval of the LPA.

g). No excavations, trenches, stripping, cultivation with a rotavator or changes in surface level to occur within the Root Protection Area, unless authorised.  

 

Supporting documents: