Issue - meetings

Variation of conditions 1 and 19 of approved application 14/01431/OUT to allow up to 80 residential unit occupations prior to completion of associated highway works and improvements including a new roundabout off the A120 as prescribed by condition 19.

Members recalled that the Chairman of the Planning Committee (Councillor White) had withdrawn this planning application from the Agenda for the meeting of the Committee held on 17 February 2020 in order to allow a further period of time in which Ramsey & Parkeston Parish Council and Harwich Town Council could submit their respective representations.

It was reported that the application site covered an area of approximately 30 hectares and was located between the A120 highway and the existing Dovercourt urban area of Harwich. The applicant proposed revisions to the extant planning permission (14/01431/OUT) under Section 73 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) in order to vary Condition 1 with a substituted phasing plan and provide revised wording to Condition 19 in order to permit the development of 80 residential dwellings ahead of the proposed new access and roundabout.

The Committee was informed that the applicant had originally sought to amend conditions 1 and 19 in order to bring forward all 297 residential dwellings ahead of the proposed new access and roundabout. Following discussions with this Council’s Officers and Essex County Council Highways Officers the application had been amended to allow a reduced amount of 80 residential units ahead of the access road and roundabout by revision of the approved phasing plan, in order to incorporate a sub-phase of phase 3 to come ahead of phases 1 and 2 for the access and roundabout.

It was noted that, at the occupation of the 80^th dwelling, all existing planning conditions and Section 106 contributions would revert back to the requirements of the original outline consent (14/01431/OUT).

Members were made aware that the site at land east of Pond Hall Farm had been allocated within the Tendring District Local Plan 2007 under Policy HAR 2 without a residential allocation. The site had also included in various iterations of the Tendring District Local Plan (2013-2033) during the draft and consultation stages with an allocation of 297 residential dwellings and a requirement for the residential units to be delivered via Stour Close. Taking into account the site was now ‘consented’ the Tendring District Local Plan (submission Draft) Part 2 referred to the site as ‘mixed use consented’ and therefore it was not necessary for the site to be considered as an allocation.

The Committee was advised that the extant outline consent was subject to an Environmental Impact Assessment with the application being accompanied by an Environmental Statement. In light of subsequent changes to environmental legislation and the time lapsed the applicant had reviewed and updated the Environmental Statement and had submitted an Environmental Statement Addendum (ESA) in order to review and mitigate any changes.

It was reported that the review to the ESA had been carried out taking into account the delivery of all 297 residential dwellings off Stour Close, and which had been prior to amending the application to restrict the number to 80 residential dwellings. The findings of that review had demonstrated that there were no severe adverse  ...  view the full minutes text for item 109