Planning (UK) articles from February 2009

Planning (UK) archives from February 2009

Planning in the media.
February 6, 2009... Prime minister Gordon Brown's pledge to lift limits on council house building marked a sea change in government policy that many seized on. The Guardian reported that Number Ten sees councils 'as one of the swiftest ways to keep a house...

Diary.(Diary entry)
February 6, 2009... Donald Trump's pounds 1 billion golf resort in Aberdeenshire has been voted the worst planning decision in the 2009 Carbuncles Awards. The awards, which cover Scotland only, seek to examine where architects, planners and policy-makers have...

Appointment at New Earth Solutions.(Adam Neil joins as a planner)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Adam Neil has joined New Earth Solutions' planning team as a planner. He was previously a planner in Poole Borough Council's policy and implementation team. His new role will focus on the delivery of waste management facilities throughout the...

Appointment at Burges Salmon.(Julian Boswall joins as partner in planning unit)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Burges Salmon has appointed Julian Boswall a partner in its planning unit. He will join next month from Eversheds, where he leads the renewable energy planning team. -------------------- Did you find this article useful? Why not...

Appointment at Montagu Evans LLP.
February 6, 2009... Planners Catherine Hoyte and Charlotte Yarker have both been promoted to associates at Montagu Evans LLP. -------------------- Did you find this article useful? Why not subscribe to the magazine? Please call 08451 55 73 55 for more...

Appointment at North Northants Development Company.(Caroline Wardle joins as project director)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... North Northants Development Company has hired Caroline Wardle as project director. She previously worked as land and planning director for Taylor Wimpey in Peterborough. Steve Sulston joins as project manager from housing and regeneration...

Appointment at EDAW.(Planners Sarah Elliott and Heather Cheesbrough appointed by EDAW)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Planners Sarah Elliott and Heather Cheesbrough have been promoted to senior directors at EDAW's head office in London. At the firm's Edinburgh office, landscape planner Simon Martin and masterplanner Brent Seaton have been made associate...

Appointment at GVA Grimley.
February 6, 2009... Mike King has joined GVA Grimley in Manchester as a director in the valuation service department and head of compulsory purchase and compensation. He was previously a partner and head of valuation at Cushman & Wakefield. ...

Appointment at the RTPI's executive board.
February 6, 2009... Charles Collins, a senior planner at Savills in Southampton, is to join the RTPI's executive board as this year's young planners' representative. -------------------- Did you find this article useful? Why not subscribe to the...

Planning Awards panel ready to receive 2009 submissions.(RTPI Planning Awards 2008)
February 6, 2009... After record entries this year judges are looking for more achievements to celebrate, reports Kay Powell. This week we presented the RTPI Planning Awards 2008, which were chosen from a record field of 111 entries. Now is the time to think...

Partnership route to deliver homes.
February 6, 2009... Planners are well placed to improve working practice in public and private sectors, Peter Studdert argues. Amid falling application fee income and drooping housing trajectories, now is a good time for local government planners to move from...

Training disk demonstrates youth programme approach.
February 6, 2009... Planning Aid Scotland has produced a DVD presenting its arts-based technique to help young people engage with the planning process. The Planning to Act training programme involves actors and volunteer planners delivering workshops to...

Applications invited for international travel scholarships.
February 6, 2009... Do you enjoy overseas travel and meeting people or want to broaden your experience of planning? If so, then apply for one of this year's Planning Summer School (PSS) travelling scholarships worth up to pounds 2,000 to help with the costs...

Research partners sought for rural development study.
February 6, 2009... A project on the potential of rural regions, funded by the European Spatial Planning Observation Network (ESPON), is looking for researchers in the UK. The planned project would look at assets and development potential in five areas -...

Events.(Conference news)
February 6, 2009... The Work of the Planning Inspectorate 18 February. North East Young Planners. Planning Studio, Claremont Tower, Newcastle University. At this evening event, planning inspector Martin Joyce will present a seminar on the roles and...

Convention takes on the challenge of change to offer spatial answers.
February 6, 2009... The theme of this year's Planning Convention reflects the twin concerns of the climate and economic crises and explores how the profession can share its knowledge to ensure a positive outcome, writes Mike Hayes. Since 2004, the RTPI's...

DC Casebook: Agricultural development - Farm dwelling agreed for cider business.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... In allowing an appeal for a farm worker's dwelling in south Wales, an inspector has decided that the preparation of cider on the holding supports the need for the development. The appellants stated that a former agricultural contracting,...

DC Casebook: Agricultural development - Conversion severance condition revised.(inspector imposed government policy over self-catering units )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... In allowing an appeal against a condition imposed on two self-catering units at a Dorset farm, an inspector has imposed a revised wording so the condition accords with government policy. The permission allowed the appellants to convert a...

DC Casebook: Agricultural development - Four-bedroom home blocked at vineyard.
February 6, 2009... Plans for a cottage at a vineyard in West Sussex have been rejected after an inspector decided that the appellants' wish to meet clients at the site did not constitute a functional need for the property. The appellants argued that they had...

DC Casebook: Commercial and industrial - Air conditioning immunity claim upheld.
February 6, 2009... The owner of premises in north London has met with partial success in two appeals resisting enforcement notices directed against the installation of air conditioning equipment. The notices concerned air conditioning units installed on the...

DC Casebook: Commercial and industrial - Airfield deemed no distraction to drivers.
February 6, 2009... The change of use of land in the Lancashire green belt to a private airstrip has been allowed after an inspector considered that it would not adversely affect the safety of drivers using the M6. The appellant proposed to use a 1,110m-long...

DC Casebook: Commercial and industrial - Storage container deemed to be building.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... In upholding an enforcement notice requiring removal of a storage container at commercial premises in Kent, an inspector confirmed the council's view that it comprises a building. The container comprised a large metal box placed on pieces...

DC Casebook: Community facilities - Disabled spaces ruled out in churchyard.
February 6, 2009... The provision of disabled car parking spaces for a grade I listed church in a West Sussex village conservation area has failed to win approval amid fears that they would endanger other road users. The church council sought to extend an...

DC Casebook: Energy development - Turbines' visual impact held insignificant.(secretaries of state permitted for wind farm )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The secretaries of state for communities and local government and energy and climate change have allowed a wind farm in Northumberland after finding that it would not alter the setting of nearby villages because of the landscape's low quality....

DC Casebook: Gypsies and travellers - Dam burst risk scuppers site retention.
February 6, 2009... The retention of a Gypsy site in Hertfordshire has been dismissed by an inspector as unacceptable on the grounds of the risk posed to residents by a nearby dam. The site lay within 150m of a 50ha reservoir built to provide water supplies...

DC Casebook: Housing: New build - Affordable homes contribution overruled.
February 6, 2009... A scheme comprising 43 flats and 22 student studios in south Wales has been allowed to proceed without the need for the developer to make a contribution towards affordable housing. The council confirmed that it did not object to the scheme...

DC Casebook: Housing: New build - Heritage area apartment design criticised.
February 6, 2009... A development involving 11 apartments on the Cornish coast has been denied permission after an inspector determined that its excessive density would create an unacceptable design. The appellants proposed a four-storey flat-roofed structure...

DC Casebook: Housing: New build - Haulage yard home claim turned down.
February 6, 2009... An appellant has failed to secure permission for a dwelling connected with an established haulage yard near Peterborough because the facility already benefited from an existing home. The appellant's father, who lived next to the site, was...

DC Casebook: Housing: New build - Staircase removal condition wins support.
February 6, 2009... An inspector has refused to lift a condition imposed on a permission for a replacement home in Hampshire after ruling that it is necessary to limit the size of the property. The condition had been imposed to reduce the amount of new floor...

DC Casebook: Householder development - Tennis court accepted as residential use.
February 6, 2009... Permission has been granted for two appellants to retain a tennis court and cabin at their home in West Sussex on the grounds that it is reasonably required in connection with the residential use. The site contained a large detached house...

DC Casebook: Leisure and entertainment - Hotel jetty rejected on safety grounds.
February 6, 2009... The replacement of a jetty opposite a hotel on Windermere has been rejected on the grounds that it would compromise safety and change the character of the lake shoreline. All that remained of the jetty were the stumps of a few timber piles...

DC Casebook: Leisure and entertainment - Woodland cafe deemed threat to amenity.(visitors centre construction refused)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... A visitors' centre offering information and refreshments has been rejected in a Cornish woodland area after an inspector found that it would harm the site's amenity value. The appellant intended to keep rare breed pigs and poultry in the...

DC Casebook: Listed buildings - Lodge demolition justified by condition.
February 6, 2009... Listed building consent has been granted for the demolition of a lodge in the curtilage of a grade B listed building in Perthshire after an inspector deemed the cost of refurbishment excessive. The main building dated from 1882 and was...

DC Casebook: Mixed use development - Canalside flats held harmful to quayside.(demolition of a vacant pub refused)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The demolition of a vacant pub in a Greater Manchester conservation area and potential world heritage site to allow 117 flats to be built has been rejected because of their impact on a quayside. The site lay in a canal basin near the...

DC Casebook: Retail development - Food store disaggregation scope debated.
February 6, 2009... In rejecting an appeal by Tesco Stores Ltd for a food store in Devon, an inspector has decided that insufficient consideration had been given to disaggregating the proposed floor space. The scheme involved the firm closing its town centre...

DC Casebook: Transport development - Transport link dismissed in green wedge.(University of Derby failed to construct bus link )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The University of Derby has failed to secure permission for the construction of a pedestrian, cycle and bus link because the route would be likely to adversely affect a green wedge and tree cover. The 230m-long and 3m-wide link was intended...

DC Casebook: Waste management - Waste recycling agreed in action area.
February 6, 2009... The provision of a recycling facility on an industrial estate on Merseyside has been allowed, an inspector also granting an award of costs in favour of the appellants. The site contained a 9,200m2 building surrounded by hard surfacing in...

DC Casebook: Court cases - Metal fence removal upheld by court.(Shaikh case against Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... A resident living on an open-plan estate in Northampton has lost a High Court challenge seeking to overturn an inspector's decision to refuse permission to retain a metal fence. The claimant had put up the 1.2m-high fence to divide his...

DC Casebook: Next week.(restoration of an Ayrshire castle refused)(vegetarian cookery school construction rejected)(construction of antiques auction room has been allowed at a monastery )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Castle works deemed to damage heritage Scottish ministers have refused consent for the restoration of an Ayrshire castle to habitable use after reporters advised that the level of intervention was inconsistent with its archaeological,...

DC Casebook: In depth - Business need claim for caravan overruled at canalside moorings.
February 6, 2009... An enforcement notice directed against a mobile home at a boat station on the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal has been upheld after an inspector found that its business needs were insufficient to justify its rural location. The station was...

DC Casebook: Housing new build - Homes backed despite open space aim.
February 6, 2009... An inspector has allowed nine homes on land in Lancashire after finding that the scheme would not prejudice the provision of open space in the area. The site comprised agricultural land bounded by motorways and built development. It had...

DC Casebook: Housing Conversion - Restaurant loss held renewal setback.
February 6, 2009... The conversion of designated restaurant premises in Cornwall into a flat has been rejected following a ruling that their loss would harm the vitality of a town centre. The inspector considered that if the premises were converted it was...

DC Casebook: Retail development - Shop subdivision raises vitality fears.
February 6, 2009... An inspector has refused to allow subdivision of a retail park unit in Northampton and addition of mezzanine floors because it would harm the town centre's vitality and viability. The sequential test endorsed by PPS6 had not been applied to...

DC Casebook: DC Forum.(Town and Country Planning Act 1990)
February 6, 2009... NEW QUERIES A terrace of three shops originally had permission for retail on the ground floor and nine flats above. The occupier then used the flats as storage and offices associated with the shops. It is not known whether this began more...

How we did it ... Hartlepool's prime site finds residential future.
February 6, 2009... Project: Renovation and reuse of the historic Park Tower, Hartlepool, that had fallen into disrepair. The project has created 50 flats, of which the area had a shortage. Background: The grade II listed tower stands on one of the main...

The things I know - Catherine Raynsford, Drivers Jonas.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Catherine Raynsford, Associate, residential affordable housing consultancy team, Drivers Jonas - Where did you study planning? I didn't - my background is in affordable housing development. But there have been many occasions when a...

Money talks.(Local Government Act 2003 )
February 6, 2009... Research by Planning highlights wide variations in the scale of pre-application charges and uncovers some of the motives and priorities that guide service providers, reports Ben Lee. In a developer's bright, airy top-floor office somewhere...

Flooding risk educator.
February 6, 2009... Environment Agency sustainable development expert Julie Foley welcomes more community engagement to steer planning's response to heavy weather, she tells Domenic Donatantonio. Julie Foley knew she had made it to a position of national...

Pre-application charge variance betrays service role confusion.
February 6, 2009... Pre-application talks may not be the first thing on everyone's mind when they are asked about the benefits of planning. Yet they should be the bread and butter of professionalism. They allow community and local planning authority...

Fyson on ... need for wind power lobbyists.
February 6, 2009... Need for wind power lobbyists to temper eagerness with understanding of planning process. The Department of Energy and Climate Change report on offshore wind power has given a huge fillip to the industry. It suggests that coastal waters in...

Shepley on ... entertaining fresh attitude.(Viewpoint essay)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Planners interested in culture and sport are not always taken seriously. The element of fun is the problem - the Anglo-Saxon paradigm forbids this. It is fine to plan for minerals and waste, which are earnest subjects with no hint of...

Legal Report - Marine bill seeks balance across offshore activity.(Marine and Coastal Access Bill)
February 6, 2009... The Marine and Coastal Access Bill, currently at the committee stage in the House of Lords, will establish a UK-wide marine planning system to allow the government to set a clear direction for how it will make best use of resources. The...

Testing project impact.(procedures for handling major infrastructure projects )
February 6, 2009... The procedures for handling major infrastructure projects are becoming clearer but the latest announcement begs important questions over probity and community input, Vicki Shiel finds. The first step taken by the government to demystifying...

Home viability stirs call for land review.
February 6, 2009... A fundamental reassessment of demands placed on developers is required if major projects are to go ahead during the downturn, a housing industry body has warned. Homes for Scotland chief executive Jonathan Fair insisted that a review of...

Park growth case pressed.(Scottish Natural Heritage plans to increase national parks)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The UK's largest national park should be increased by 20 per cent by extending it into Perth and Kinross, a report before the Scottish Government has urged. Scottish Natural Heritage's recommendations for the Cairngorms national park,...

Marine plan to guide power applications.(marine spatial plan)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Scottish ministers have commissioned a marine spatial plan to guide wave and tidal energy schemes in the Pentland Firth and off Orkney. Environment secretary Richard Lochhead said the document would act as a planning tool for both...

Online now ..
February 6, 2009... Visit PlanningResource.co.uk today for how to fill redundant shops and whether councils should consider installing community markets Also online Project review of Leith Dockside Interview with leading green roofs campaigner Dusty Gedge. ...

Planning Stats.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... pounds 11 billion - The upper estimate of the cost of not allowing nuclear power as an option in trying to achieve an 80 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. The lowest estimate is pounds 3 billion, claims an update by the DCLG. ...

Details stall service deal.(Capita Symonds )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Capita Symonds will have to wait until later this month to find out whether it is to run Breckland District Council's planning and building control service. The potentially groundbreaking deal was due to be approved by a full council...

MVA reviews zone success.(London Borough of Southwark.)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... MVA Consultancy has been appointed to review the impact of 20mph zones on road safety in the London Borough of Southwark. The study will analyse accident statistics and traffic speed and flow and a sample of residents will be consulted to...

Site housing bid launched.
February 6, 2009... Jones Lang LaSalle has submitted an application on behalf of a packaging firm attempting to redevelop land in Glasgow for housing. The consultancy has worked on proposals for SCA Packaging Ltd's Riverford Road site in Pollokshaws that...

Savills' urban team credited for profits.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Savills has reported a record turnover of pounds 21 million for its planning and regeneration team. The firm's head of planning and regeneration Roger Hepher attributed the figures to the diversity of its client base and the large amount...

Barton Willmore prepares zoo expansion.
February 6, 2009... Barton Willmore is advising Chester Zoo on its pounds 225 million plan to become the largest conservation, animal and leisure attraction of its kind in Europe. The Natural Vision project will expand the zoo from 50ha to 80ha. The pounds 90...

Swansea set for initiative.(Swansea City Centre Partnership contracts with Welsh Assembly to boost social and economic regeneration)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Swansea is being targeted by the Welsh Assembly Government for a multi-million-pound initiative to boost social and economic regeneration in the city. The centre is to be designated a strategic regeneration area (SRA) with the aim of...

Mayor allows Ealing homes.
February 6, 2009... London mayor Boris Johnson has backed developer Glenkerrin's pounds 500 million residential redevelopment for Ealing town centre. The Arcadia scheme won planning consent from the London Borough of Ealing last month (Planning, 9 January,...

Office plans hit bar block.
February 6, 2009... The London Borough of Hackney last week voted in favour of plans to extend a conservation area to cover a site earmarked for a major office development. The plans propose to amalgamate the South Shoreditch and Shoreditch High Street...

First housing approved for surrey estate.
February 6, 2009... The regeneration of a Surrey community can begin after London Borough of Sutton planners gave approval for the first 112 homes. The riverside Durand Close Estate in Carshalton will be demolished and replaced with 474 homes - 45 per cent...

Parkinson calls for longer-term vision.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The effect of the credit crunch on the regeneration sector is serious and requires long-term investment to ride it out, a report published last week claims. Commissioned by the government last May to assess the impact of the downturn, the...

Hub proposal rival floated.
February 6, 2009... The 2M Group opposed to Heathrow Airport's expansion has proposed a cheaper pounds 1.5 billion rail network alternative to the government's Heathrow hub. At the launch of the second phase of its rail blueprint, 2M spokesman and London...

Runway vote wins backing.
February 6, 2009... Only 28 of the 57 Labour MPs who called for ministers to consider alternatives to Heathrow expansion voted against the government on a third runway last week. The Conservatives forced the opposition day vote after transport secretary Geoff...

Solihull nets travel cash.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The government has approved pounds 11 million of public transport improvements for Solihull, Birmingham International Airport and the National Exhibition Centre. The plans include an interchange at Birmingham International rail station and...

Funding bids urged to increase bus use.(Local authorities bid for funding for improvement in local bus services )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Local authorities are being invited to bid for funding from a pounds 25 million pot to improve bus services in a competition launched by the DfT last week. The latest round of funding for the Kickstart initiative offers finance to launch...

DfT supports Heysham-M6 link road consent with investment.
February 6, 2009... The government has agreed to contribute pounds 133 million towards the Heysham-M6 link road in Lancashire, leaving the local authority to provide just pounds 4 million. The scheme proposed by Lancashire County Council has been granted...

Study backs biogas cash.
February 6, 2009... The government has been urged to give infrastructure levy cash to renewables projects after a report claimed that biogas could heat almost half of UK homes. The National Grid study examines how all biodegradable waste streams such as...

Scots target energy jobs.(government agencies plan to develop subsea and onshore grids )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The Scottish Government is to speed up plans to develop subsea and onshore grids and develop clean fossil fuel technologies to create green energy employment. Finance and sustainable growth secretary John Swinney said the proposals could...

Court to hear waste claim.(Surrey parish council case against Surrey County Council)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... A Surrey parish council must wait to hear the outcome of its High Court fight to block a large incinerator, which it said will threaten a population of great crested newts. Capel Parish Council has challenged Surrey County Council's...

Towns water guide issued.(sustainable zero carbon development)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Advice on how towns and homes can prepare for rising water levels and increased flooding will be launched later this month. The LifE Report aims to identify ways in which flood risk management can be integrated with sustainable zero carbon...

Crystal Palace Park proposals called in.
February 6, 2009... Communities secretary Hazel Blears is to call in plans for homes in a south London park after questioning their sustainable development and biodiversity credentials. The London Development Agency's proposal for Crystal Palace Park includes...

Homeowners to challenge East Riding flood defence strategy.
February 6, 2009... Residents in Yorkshire are trying to mount a legal challenge against Environment Agency plans to allow their land to flood. Some defences in the Holderness area of the East Riding will be left unprotected under the Environment Agency's...

Agenda.(Statistical table)(Brief article)(Calendar)
February 6, 2009... 17 February: Designing Out Terrorism Conference Organiser: RTPI Venue: London Fee: Free Details: london@rtpi.org.uk 17 February: Parks in the Credit Crunch Organiser: GreenSpace Venue: London Fee: pounds 90-pounds 230...

Blears gives site consent.(home development on a contaminated waste dump approved)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... A 400-home development on a contaminated waste dump in Maidenhead has been approved despite providing no affordable housing. The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead fiercely opposed Michael Shanly Homes' proposal for flats and houses on...

Green belt impacts may delay housing.
February 6, 2009... Plans for major renewal in Coventry including up to 3,328 homes could face an inquiry despite being approved by the local authority. Coventry City Council's planning committee granted an outline application under its pounds 350 million New...

Inquiry approves South Derbyshire homes.
February 6, 2009... South Derbyshire District Council has won some leeway on its local development framework after an inquiry into five housing appeals. Communities secretary Hazel Blears approved three schemes last week to meet the district's short-term need...

College lodges designs for Longbridge.
February 6, 2009... Bournville College has lodged detailed plans for an pounds 84 million campus at the former MG Rover works at Longbridge in Birmingham. Broadway Malyan is the architect for the six-storey building, which will anchor the new town centre in St...