Agenda item

Proposal:             Proposed two storey undercroft office extension.

Associated Papers:

http://tinyurl.com/h7ugt9r

(The site was viewed by the Site Viewing Working Party)

The Committee considered the written report and recommendation from the Head of Planning Services to refuse permission.

The Committee received supplementary information, circulated prior to the meeting which:

(1)  Detailed the level of occupation of Aura House

(2)  Detailed the number of separate business operating at Aura House

The Committee was addressed by the following deputee:

(1)  Cllr Edward Rees who objected to the officers recommendation and supported the proposal for the following reasons:

a)    The proposal would provide space for businesses and employment in a ward that has a need.

b)    The initial build of Aura House was very successful and the proposal would seek to increase economic growth.

c)    The grounds for refusal were a subjective judgement and the proposal would seek to add variety and character to the area.

d)    The proposal had not generated any objections from members of the public or ward Councillors

e)    The proposal was in line with Havant Borough Council’s parking policy and had not received objections from the Highways Authority

f)     The proposal was supported by a strong business case for further development of the site

The committee discussed the application in detail together with the views raised during the deputation.

Members of the committee considered the economic benefits of the proposal to the local businesses and prosperity of the Borough. Although there were some perceived projected benefits to employment and business in the area, the committee also considered the significant environmental impacts of the proposal and its location. It was considered that the proposal constituted an overdevelopment of the site and was, due to its bulk and prominent location, unsympathetic to the character of the area and an incongruous feature to the street scene. It was therefore

RESOLVED that the Head of Planning be authorised to refuse permission for application APP/16/00928 for the following reason:

1.    The proposed Office Extension would by reason of its prominent siting, design, size, materials, height, mass and bulk have a harmful impact on the character and appearance of the area, detract from the appearance4 of the existing building and represent an overdevelopment of this shallow and constricted site. The proposal would therefore conflict with policy CS16 of the Havant Borough Local Plan (Core Strategy) 2011, the Havant Borough Council Borough Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document 2011 and the National Planning Policy Framework.