| Conditions / Reason for Refusal: |
01
The replacement of the boundary hedge with a brick boundary wall along the Morthen Road frontage, by reason of its appearance, scale and location within this prominent location, is detrimental to the visual amenities of the street scene and erodes the open nature of the area, contrary to Local Plan Policies CS28 ‘Sustainable Development’ and SP55 ‘Design Principles’, as well as the Council’s SPD ‘Householder Design Guide’ and the guidance in the National Planning Policy Framework and the National Planning Practice Guidance.
02
The Council considers that the removal of the boundary hedge results in a loss of an attractive soft boundary to the site, as well as a loss of biodiversity where no suitable replacement has been provided, to the detriment of the visual amenity and character of the area, and accordingly the proposal is contrary to the aims of Local Plan Policies CS19 ‘Green Infrastructure’, CS20 ‘Biodiversity / Geodiversity’, SP33 ‘Conserving and Enhancing the Natural Environment’, and SP55 ‘Design Principles’, as well as the National Planning Policy Framework.
Informative
Enforcement action has been authorised requiring the removal of the boundary wall along the side boundary, or its reduction in height to a maximum 1m, within a compliance period of 3 months. Appropriate action should be taken to secure the removal/reduction in height of the brick wall and brick posts to avoid formal enforcement action.
POSITIVE AND PROACTIVE STATEMENT
The applicant did not enter any pre application discussions with the Local Planning Authority. It is not possible to support a scheme of this nature and no amendments have been identified at this time to make it acceptable. It was not considered to be in accordance with the principles of the National Planning Policy Framework and resulted in this refusal.
|
