Agenda and minutes

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Items
No. Item

496.

Declarations of Interest

Councillors should not act or take decisions in order to gain financial or other material benefits for themselves or their spouse, civil partner or person with whom they are living with as a spouse or civil partner.  They must declare and resolve any interests and relationships.

 

The Chairman will ask Members if they have any interests to declare in respect of items on this agenda, under the following headings:

 

(a)          Disclosable Pecuniary Interests (DPI) under the Localism Act 2011.  The nature as well as the existence of any such interest must be declared.  After declaring a DPI, the Member must leave the meeting and not take part in the discussion or vote.  This applies even if there is provision for public speaking.

 

(b)          Disclosable Non Pecuniary (DNPI) under the Code of Conduct adopted by the Council in May 2012.  The nature as well as the existence of any such interest must be declared.  After declaring a DNPI interest, the Member may stay, speak and vote on the matter.

 

(c)          Where it is possible that a fair-minded and informed observer, having considered the facts would conclude that there was a real possibility that the Member might be predetermined or biased the Member should declare their predetermination or bias and then leave the room while that item is considered.

 

Advice to Members:  If any Councillor has any doubt about the existence or nature of any DPI or DNPI which he/she may have in any item on this agenda, he/she should seek advice from the Monitoring Officer, the Head of Legal or from other Solicitors in Legal Services as early as possible, and in advance of the Meeting.

 

Minutes:

No interests were declared.

497.

17/505865/FULL - Land at Sondes Arms, Station Approach, Selling Faversham, ME13 9PL

10am – 17/505865/FULL - Land at Sondes Arms, Station Approach, Selling, Faversham, Kent, ME13 9PL

Minutes:

The Chairman welcomed the Applicant, the Applicant’s Agent and 15 members of the public to the meeting.

 

The Planner introduced the application which sought planning permission for a three bedroom detached dwelling.  He explained that the site was a narrow strip of land which used to be part of the curtilage of the former Sondes Arms public house, but was now in separate ownership.  The frontage to the application site was to Station Approach, and access to the site was by way of an agreement with Network Rail.  The site was situated in the established built-up area, and to the north and east there was recently developed housing.  The Planner outlined the planning history of the site as noted in the Committee report.

 

The Planner provided details of the application and stated that the garden would be 10 metres deep, with off-road parking space for two cars at the front of the property. The amended drawings indicated a parking area which allowed vehicles to reverse within the site, ensuring egress in a forward gear.  He advised that the garage included in the original application had now been deleted from the application.

 

The Planner advised that seven letters of objection had been received, as noted in the report, and he outlined the issues that had been raised:  traffic concerns; noise during construction; the plot was contaminated with concrete; overdevelopment and overshadowing of site; issues with the access road being a private road; potential loss of a community asset; and the design was not-in-keeping.  The Planner reported that Selling Parish Council had stated that the proposed dwelling was too large for the site; there were no details of the foul water drainage; and parking in the area would aggravate the traffic issues along Station Approach; and it was too near to the Sondes Arms.

 

The Planner summarised and stated that infill development was acceptable within an established built-up area; and that there was unlikely to be any overlooking, with a first floor window to the landing, rather than to a habitable room.  The dwelling would be parallel to the neighbouring property, it was predominantly a residential area, and he considered it would not have a detrimental effect on residential amenity.  He concluded by advising that a previous application had set a precedent for a dwelling on the site, and the proposal was in accordance with Paragraph 14 of the National Planning Policy Framework and Policy ST3 of the Local Plan, and it was a sustainable form of development.

 

The Agent stated that the height of the proposed dwelling was nine metres which was the same height as neighbouring properties, with a Kentish design similar to the local vernacular.

 

Local residents raised points in objection to the application which included:  the new use for the Sondes Arms needed time to ‘bed-in’ as a business, this development would not help; the proposal would effect the garden of the Sondes Arms; the plans were too vague; more dialogue of what was planned was required; there  ...  view the full minutes text for item 497.