Agenda item

Kegworth Wesley Methodist Church High Street Kegworth

Kegworth Wesley Methodist Church, High Street, Kegworth

Officer’s recommendation: Permit

Having declared an interest in the item, Councillor C Sewell removed herself from the meeting to join the public gallery prior to being invited to speak as the adjoining Ward Member. Councillor J Geary joined the Committee as a substitute and declared that he had been lobbied without influence on the item.

The Senior Planning Officer presented the report.

Mr A Preistley, Parish Councillor, addressed the Committee.  He highlighted the Parish Council’s main concern of the lack of parking provision proposed and informed Members of the very little parking available in Kegworth.  He summarised the current issues with roadside parking and the problems it caused for the community including antisocial and illegal parking.  It was the Parish Council’s view that the applicant should reconsider the parking provision to allow more parking spaces within the curtilage of the site.  The Committee were urged to refuse the application.

Mr L Morris, agent, addressed the Committee.  He reported that he had worked closely with planning officers to address concerns and that there had been no objections from the statutory consultees.  The economic benefits were noted and the important utilisation of the building to ensure its long-term survival.  Reference was also made to the nearby working facilities for potential residents and the good local amenities. 

Councillor R Sutton, Ward Member, addressed the Committee.  He acknowledged that the Committee were required to consider material reasons for this application but having undertaken research, he could not find any similar applications that had been approved by another authority on its first submission.  He went on to quote several cases and made comparisons between them and the application in front of Members to indicate reasons why the application should not be approved.

Councillor C Sewell, adjoining Ward Member, addressed the Committee.  She stressed how the limited parking in Keqworth was problematic and that antisocial parking occurred regularly.  She referred to the proposed cycle store and informed the committee that the use of cycles had decreased due to the lack of cycle paths and the recent changes to the road network making this form of travel difficult.  She acknowledged that the building did need to be improved but was concerned that approving this application would set a precedent for other similar applications. 

After addressing the Committee, Councillor C Sewell left the meeting during consideration and voting on the item.

The Planning and Development Team Manager addressed the matters raised by the speakers.

In determining the application Members acknowledged the need to preserve this historic building and the severe parking issues in the area.  Several concerns were raised in relation to the lack of parking provision proposed for the development and a discussion was had on the availability of other forms of transport such as cycle and public transport.

The officer’s recommendation to permit the application was moved by Councillor R Morris and seconded by Councillor R Boam.

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

The motion was CARRIED.

RESOLVED THAT:

The application be permitted in accordance with the recommendation of the Head of Planning and Infrastructure.

At the conclusion of the item, Councillor C Sewell returned to the Committee.  Therefore, as no longer required as a substitute, Councillor J Geary left the meeting.