Agenda item

Flagstaff Island, Lountside, Ashby De La Zouch, Leicestershire, LE65 1JP

Having declared an interest, Councillor D Harrison removed himself from the Committee and joined the public gallery until he was invited to speak in objection.

The Senior Planning Officer presented the report to Members.

Mr Moore, objector, addressed the committee and challenged the access provisions as he believed it was not adequate due to the narrow road and the size of the vehicles using it.  The number of lorries per hour and parking spaces on site were also questioned as he felt it would lead to major queuing which would impact the area.  A concern was also shared in relation to how the toilet waste would be disposed of as there was no mention of the impact of foul waste from the sewers on the River Mease Special Area of Conservation.

Councillor D Harrison, Ward Member, addressed the Committee in objection to the application.  He raised concerns that the scale was much larger than originally cited and expressed a wish to remind the committee that the River Mease had been discussed in detail in the inspector’s report. He conceded that there would be economic benefits however felt that based on the information presented that these considerations would not outweigh the harm identified. It was noted that the site lay within the catchment area of the River Mease and was a special area of conservation, a site of special scientific interest, and therefore an assessment of whether the proposal would have an impact on this would be important. The amount of time it would take to unload all the vehicles was highlighted, and it was stated that even if a vehicle could be unloaded in an hour, this would leave vehicles standing and waiting for many hours to be unloaded.  

Councillor D Harrison then left the meeting and took no part in the debate and voting thereon.

Officers responded that the River Mease issues did not form part of this discussion as they had been dealt with under the outline permission already approved, therefore it was not a consideration for the Planning Inspector on the outline application.   It was reiterated that no objections had been received by the Highways Authority and the roads within the site were the responsibility for the landowner and not a consideration for the Committee.

In determining the application Members raised concerns in relation to the potential road safety issues whereby vehicles may be queuing and blocking the highway.  Clarification was sought on whether Highways England, the responsible body for the motorway island, had any concerns about the overspill of vehicles blocking the road traffic island. Officers responded that the Highways England had not been consulted on the reserve matters application because they had not objected at the outline stages.

 A discussion took place on the number of vehicles accessing the site per hour and a suggestion was made to include a condition to limit this number to three vehicles maximum.  Officers advised that this would be an unenforceable condition, however a note could be added to the planning permission urging the applicant to consider parking and vehicular movement should Members wish.

Some further concerns were raised in relation to the possible detrimental impact this application could have to the area if approved and strong views were voiced in objection.

A motion to permit the application in accordance with the officer’s recommendation with the inclusion of the note to applicant as suggested was moved by Councillor R Boam and seconded by Councillor J Bridges.

The Chair put the motion to the vote.  A recorded vote being required, the voting was as detailed below.

RESOLVED THAT:

The application be permitted in accordance with the recommendation of the Head of Planning and Infrastructure, with the added note to the applicant in relation to the parking and vehicular movement.

Councillor D Harrison returned to the meeting at the conclusion of the item.