Agenda and minutes

An apology for absence was received from Councillors R F Eaton and Dr T Khong.

None.

Members are reminded that any declaration of interest should be made having regard to the Members’ Code of Conduct. In particular, Members must make clear the nature of the interest and whether it is 'pecuniary' or ‘non-pecuniary'.

In respect of planning application number 15/00398/COU:

(i)        Councillor D A Gamble declared a pecuniary interest insofar as he presently rented a car parking space on the secure section of the site at 17 Mandervell Road, Oadby. The Member stated that he would leave the Chamber during consideration of the same by the Committee;

(ii)       Councillor J Kaufman declared a non-pecuniary interest insofar as being the Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board of this Council; and

(iii)      All Members acknowledged a non-pecuniary interest insofar as the Leisure Development Officer of this Council was known to Members, whose representations are citied in the report (at pages 11 - 12) and in a letter dated 16 February 2016 from Marrons Shakespeares LLP addressed to the Planning Department (as circulated at the meeting).

All Members attended the meeting without prejudice and with an open mind.

To read, confirm and sign the minutes of the previous meeting in accordance with Rule 17 of Part 4 of the Constitution.

Members are advised that the Minutes of the Development Control Committee held on Thursday, 21 January 2016 shall be received in a Supplementary Agenda Update issued ahead of the meeting of this Committee in due course.

RESOLVED THAT: 

The minutes of the previous meeting of the Committee held on 21 January 2016, as received in the supplementary agenda update (at pages 1 - 15) be taken as read, confirmed and signed.

To receive any Petitions and, or, Deputations in accordance with Rule 24 of Part 4 of the Constitution.

None.

The Committee gave consideration to the report (at pages 1 - 2) as delivered by the Corporate Enforcement Officer which should be read together with these minutes as a composite document.

The Corporate Enforcement Officer reported that at a meeting of the Development Control Sub-Committee (Enforcement) on the 11 January 2016, the Chair had expressed a concern as to whether the Sub-Committee continued to serve a useful function in duly discharging its original terms of reference, most notably in managing the backlog of enforcement cases and ensuring that ward Members were adequately furnished with enforcement-related information. Upon review, it was decided that this was not the case and therefore recommended that meetings of the Sub-Committee be suspended for, and subsequently reviewed after, a period of one-year.

The Corporate Enforcement Officer reported that since the Sub-Committee’s inception, the backlog of enforcement cases had significantly reduced from approximately 200 down to 100 cases. He advised that enforcement cases were ordinarily closed by means of delegated report – in respect of which, and at the present time, the Sub-Committee was merely performing a “rubber-stamping” exercise - and that more complex cases, or those entertaining a particular public interest, were to be reserved for resolution before this Committee. He stated that closed enforcement cases were to be reported to this Committee on a six-monthly basis so that the wider aspect of Member participation and scrutiny was maintained.

Councillor Mrs H E Loydall requested that the substantive recommendation as set out at paragraph 2 of the report (at page 1) be amended to reflect the one-year suspension period and, subject to that amendment, moved the recommendation.

Councillor D A Gamble seconded the recommendation (as amended).

Councillor G A Boulter enquired as to whether the Constitution of the Council required amending.

The Chair advised that all the necessary constitutional and governance requirements would be reviewed and implemented, accordingly.

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED THAT:

Meetings of the Development Control Sub-Committee (Enforcement) be herewith suspended for a period of one-year.

Councillor D A Gamble left the Chamber at 7:11 pm.

The Committee gave consideration to the report and appendices (at pages 3 - 17) as delivered by the Interim Planning Control Manager which should be read together with these minutes as a composite document.

1.      Application No. 15/00398/COU – 17 Mandervell Road, Oadby, Leicestershire, LE2 5LQ

Ms Louise Hryniw, Solicitor at Marrons Shakespeares LLP, spoke upon the application on behalf of the applicant.

Ms Hryniw stated that the applicant ran the Oadby and Leicester Gymnastics Club (“the Club”) which offered gymnastics activities and disciplines for all ages and abilities. She stated that the Club currently operated from Beauchamp College, Oadby and was at capacity with approximately 300 members and a waiting list of 200 children/young people. In respect of the representations received, citing responses from this Council’s Leisure Development Officer (at pages 11- 12), British Gymnastics (at pages 10 -11) and a further letter dated 15 February received from the Deputy Head Teacher at Brocks Hill Primary School, Oadby “whole heartedly” supporting the application, she said that the levels of support for the same would provide a community use valuable to residents and would extend after-school opportunities available to children.

Ms Hryniw said that the Applicant had spent several years looking for a property that would be suitable for the gymnastics facility (viz. high ceilings, large open plan room) and that numerous other properties had not fulfilled the same requirements. The location was said to be ideal given its close proximity to Beauchamp College, allowing existing members to continue to use the facility whilst giving the Club a larger permanent base to grow its membership.

With reference to a letter dated 16 February 2016 from Marrons Shakespeares LLP and addressed to the Planning Department, Ms Hryniw surmised that the applicant had:

(i)        viewed numerous properties over a period of years, all of which have been unsuitable for the proposed gymnastics use;

(ii)       instructed that it would not be viable for the landlord to refurbish the property for modern employment use;

(iii)      instructed that the site had been marketed by a commercial agent for class B use since December 2014 without any firm interest; and

(iv)      anticipated that the gymnastics facility will operate entirely satisfactorily within the industrial estate.

With reference to the report’s conclusion, citing Officers’ recognition of ‘permission [being] subject to a condition limiting the permission to the applicants use only...’ (at page 16), Ms Hryniw stated that the class B use could be suspended  temporarily to allow the gymnastics facility to run, subject to a reversion of business use should the Club cease to operate. In summary, given material considerations that existed in favour of granting planning permission, in the form of the health promotion benefits, and the community benefit the gymnastics facility would deliver, she commended the application for approval in the form of a permission subject to a personal condition reverting to a class B use at the point the Club vacated the premises.

The Committee  ...  view the full minutes text for item 57.