Agenda item

Change of use of former medical centre, including first and second floor extensions to 19 no residential apartments

Officers outlined the application and the intended conversion of the existing building into an apartment block of 19 units.  This would be achieved by re-modelling the existing structure and extending the first floor area and adding a second floor. The exterior of the building would be finished with areas of cladding and render to give a more modern appearance.

It was noted that the site was located within the Church Hill District Centre and Members were referred to policy 30 of the Borough of Redditch Local Plan.  Officers had assessed the scheme and found it to be compliant under policy 30.  The site was in a sustainable location close to public transport links and local amenities.

With regard to affordable housing, the applicant had submitted a Viability Statement suggesting that such an obligation would make the scheme unviable.  The applicant’s statement had been assessed by the Council’s Viability Advisor who had agreed with the argument put forward, and for that reason no contribution towards affordable housing was being sought.

The application was recommended for approval.

In responding to questions from Members officers confirmed that all 19 units would be for market sale and that there might be a second phase on the area of land marked in blue on the plan on page 5 of the Site Plans and Presentations Pack.  County Highways had not sought a section 106 contribution for buses and the improvements they intended to apply the transport contribution to were set out at paragraph 5 on page 12 of the agenda.

In debating the application concerns were expressed that an opportunity had been lost to secure affordable housing through the scheme and that this should be re-visited before the application was determined.

Officers responded by re-iterating the comments about the Viability Statement and explaining that due to the government policy on vacant building credit the scheme would only have yielded 1.7 affordable units had this been pursued.  The Councils Viability Advisor had endorsed the approach for this site and there needed to be a balance between securing affordable housing and allowing dis-used sites to be brought forward to provide housing.

Views were expressed in support of the scheme noting the suitability of the location of the site, the opportunity to re-use an empty and unattractive building, the positive impact improving the site would have on the area and the fact that 19 dwellings would be provided for the District.

A motion to defer the application for officers to have further discussions with the applicant about the provision of affordable housing was defeated.

RESOLVED that

Having regard to the development plan and to all other material considerations, authority be delegated to the head of Planning and Regeneration to grant planning permission subject to :-

a.     The satisfactory completion of a suitable legal mechanism ensuring that:

1.     Contributions are paid to the Borough Council in respect to off-site open space and equipped play and sport provision in accordance with the Council’s adopted SPD.

2.     Contributions are paid to the Borough Council towards the provision of domestic and recycling bins for the new development in accordance with the County’s Waste Strategy.

3.     Contributions are paid towards Town Centre enhancement in accordance with the Town Centre Strategy.

4.     Contribution to be paid to the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (WHAT) to be used to provide services needed by the occupants of the new homes and the community at large.  Agreement of a final sum to be delegated to the Head of Planning and Regeneration Services (subject to verifying any deductions based on services already provided by the WAHT).

5.     Contribution to be paid to County Highways to be used towards improvement to local walking and cycling infrastructure, Community transport and footway improvement.

6.     A Section 106 monitoring fee (as of 1 September 2019, revised Regulation were issued to allow the Council to include a provision for monitoring fees in Section 106 Agreements to ensure the obligations set down in the Agreement are met)

And

b.    The conditions and informatives set out in pages 12 to 16 of the main agenda.