Agenda item

Applications Arising

7.1  14C257 – Cefn Trefor, Trefor

Minutes:

7.1 14C257 – Outline application for the erection of an affordable dwelling together with full details of the vehicular access and drainage with all other matters reserved on land adjacent to Cefn Trefor, Trefor

 

The purpose of the report is to define the term ‘Local Need’ and suggest conditions to be appended to the decision notice in relation to the application which was approved by the Planning and Orders Committee at its meeting held on 5th December, 2018 subject to a Section 106 agreement to ensure the dwelling is developed as an affordable dwelling, contrary to the recommendation of Officers that permission be refused as the application is contrary to policy TAI 6. 

 

The Planning Development Manager reported that the applicant’s Agent has suggested that ‘local’ should be defined within the Joint Local Development Plan (JLDP) and ‘local’ should mean Anglesey and Gwynedd.  The Committee were afforded coloured maps which showed what is meant by the area surrounding clusters as part of the Section 106 agreement if the applicants wished to sell the dwelling in the future.  The Officer said that the maps have been afforded to comply with the policy to afford dwellings for local people as they must have lived within the village or the immediate area for 5 years.

 

Members questioned whether the towns and villages had been removed from the coloured maps afforded to the meeting.  The Planning Development Manager responded that the aim of the policy is to afford local housing; the policy aim is not to draw people from towns and villages to live within the countryside.

 

Councillor Eric W Jones expressed that he considered that all residents of the Island are local persons to Anglesey.

 

Councillor K P Hughes said that the guidelines are preventing more than facilitating this issue of local person.  He expressed that it is important to allow young people who wish to stay within their own habitat to be able to build houses and stay on the Island.  Councillor K P Hughes proposed that ‘local person’ should be the whole of Anglesey.  Councillor Eric Jones seconded the proposal. 

 

The Chair said that she considered that there is deficiency within the policy as regards to ‘local person’ definition.  She expressed that in fairness to this application and to any future application before the Planning and Orders Committee the Chair proposed that the application be deferred and to refer the definition of ‘local person’ to the Joint Planning Policy Committee for discussion and clarification in case a challenge or appeal by High Court is faced by this Authority in the future.  Councillor John Griffith seconded the proposal.

 

The Legal Services Manager said that this application was approved under Policy TAI 6 and this policy is clear that the occupants of the dwelling must live within the cluster or has lived within the rural area.  He said that it was acceptable that the Committee request the Joint Planning Policy Committee to respond to clarify the definition of a rural area and a local person.

 

Following the ensuing vote it was RESOLVED to defer consideration of the application and to refer the definition of ‘local person’ to the Joint Planning Policy Committee for clarification and discussion.

 

 

 

It was RESOLVED

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