BE1 clause d - The Kibworths provision

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Object

Harborough Local Plan 2011-2031, Proposed Submission

Representation ID: 7627

Received: 17/12/2017

Respondent: Armstrong Rigg Planning

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

Representation Summary:

The Kibworths need additional commercial and community infrastructure to help sustainably deliver both committed and required levels of growth, fill notable gaps in service provision (i.e. a petrol filling station), respond to the significant need identified in the HEDNA 2017 for office floorspace and to meet the priorities set by the emerging Neighbourhood Plan for providing increased opportunities for people to work from home.

The site at Land at Windmill Farm is suitable and available for the proposed development and is sustainably
located at a key junction on the way into the Kibworths. As such we recommend that it is allocated as follows in

Full text:

We wish to submit our client's site at Land at Windmill Farm, Kibworth Harcourt for consideration as a site capable of delivering a mixed-use development comprising offices, a petrol filling station, a pre-school and live-work units. This letter demonstrates that there is a clear need for the additional commercial and community infrastructure proposed and that Land at Windmill Farm is a uniquely available, suitable, achievable and viable site to accommodate the proposed development.

In addition to these representations, Manor Oak Homes have submitted separate detailed comments on the strategic policies contained in the draft Local Plan (Ref: GA/DJ/01014/L0016). In summary, these separate representations demonstrate that: the Kibworths is set to grow by 450 homes during the plan period due to existing commitments; the Kibworths is a uniquely sustainable location for growth over and above these existing commitments; the Council's current policy of not allocating any additional residential development to the Kibworths is unjust as it fails to plan positively for the needs of the Kibworths going forwards; and that the Council's two proposed Strategic Development Areas (SDAs) at Lutterworth and Scraptoft North are highly unlikely to deliver their predicted levels of growth during the plan period. On this basis, Manor Oak Homes' consider that the Council will need to allocate additional residential development during the plan period and that the Kibworths' is the most sustainable option for meeting this growth.

Site Description
The site is located to the east of the Kibworths, opposite the junction between the A6 and New Road, which is to be upgraded to a 3-arm roundabout junction as secured by the S106 agreement for Manor Oak Homes' permitted
development at Land to the South and West of Priory Business Park (Ref: 16/00286/OUT). This is a key junction on the way into the Kibworths from the south-east.

The site comprises 7.6ha of arable farmland that is bound by a cemetery to the north, agricultural land to the east and south and by residential properties, a telephone exchange and the A6 to the west, across from which is the built-up area of the Kibworths.

The site is in Flood Zone 1 (i.e. Low Risk), is located away from any designated heritage assets including listed buildings and the Kibworths two conservation areas and is not the subject of any environmental designations. There is a public footpath running through the site that would be accommodated within the proposals.

Proposed Development
The proposed development is for a mixed-use scheme comprising offices, a petrol filling station, a pre-school and live-work units. Access would be provided from an additional 4th arm to the 3-arm roundabout that is to be provided at the junction of New Road/ A6.

A Masterplan Sketch prepared by RG+P (Ref: 40824 / 004A) in support of these representations is contained at Enclosure 1. This demonstrates how the proposed uses could be accommodated on the site with the offices and petrol filling station located in a prominent position near to the roundabout junction and the pre-school and live­ work units located further to the north-west away from the site access. In addition to the enclosed Masterplan Sketch, the following technical documents are submitted in support of the representations:

*Initial Landscape and Visual Appraisal, Aspect Landscape Planning (Ref: 6079.LBN.001) (Enclosure 2)
*Preliminary Ecological Review, Aspect Ecology (Ref: 1005272 BNOl EOD dvl) (Enclosure 3)
*Preliminary Arboricultural Appraisal, Aspect Arboriculture (Ref: ARB9733) (Enclosure 4)
*Highway Improvement/ Capacity Note, JPP Consulting (Ref: U8572PM/MA/MA/001A) (Enclosure 5)

The proposed development has been carefully designed to take account of existing site constraints and opportunities identified in the enclosed documents.

Need for Additional Commercial and Community Infrastructure

Before turning to consider the merits of land at Windmill Farm, we outline below the clear need for the additional commercial and community infrastructure proposed:

*Offices: The Leicester and Leicestershire Housing and Economic Development Needs Assessment (HEDNA, 2017) outlines the following employment land needs in Harborough between 2011 and 2031:

B1a/b: 14-21 hectares
B1c/B2: 22 hectares
Small B8: 8 hectares


The table above indicates that there is a distinct need for additional office floorspace in the district. Furthermore, it is clear from the below that while the Local Plan does allocate land for office development, it does not provide for sufficient additional office floorspace in the Kibworths.

Policy Kl allocates 5.7ha of land in the Kibworths for Bla, Blb, Blc and B2 use classes, with Blc and B2 uses expected to predominate. Furthermore, our client's permitted scheme on the same site (Ref: 16/00286/OUT) will deliver a majority of light industrial units, with only 7% of the total floorspace proposed as offices. The above table indicates that the need for office floorspace accounts for between 32-41% of total employment floorspace needs and yet in the delivery planned for the Kibworths, office5 only account for 7% of the total mix. On this basis, we consider that there is a distinct need for additional office floorspace in the Kibworths to meet the needs of local business and help provide for sustainable development.

* Live- Work Units: The emerging Kibworth Neighbourhood Plan that was recently approved for referendum, includes clear support for home working as a way to help promote employment activities whilst reducing the dependency on the car for journeys to employment sites outside the Pari sh. It recognises that people may not have a suitable space within their home from which to run a business, or that they may wish to distinctly and deliberately separate their work and living space. On thi s bassi , the neighbourhood plan includes a policy supporting the construction of extensions, the conversion of outbuildings, and the development of new free-standing buildings in gardens from which businesses can operate (Policy E4). While this policy doesn't strictly allow for new live-work units, it does state in the supporting text that "There is a need to recognise the high levels of people who state that they work from home". In this context, and with respect to the need for additional homes to be allocated to meet the shortfall in the Council's predicted delivery at Lutterworth and Scraptoft North SDAs, it is clear that there is a distinct need for live-work units in the Kibworths to meet locally identified needs.

* Petrol filling station: The nearest petrol filling station to the Kibworths is a BP garage located on the A6 more than 3 miles away to the southeast. There is therefore a clear need for a petrol station in the settlement and the proposed site represents a unique opportunity to deliver this need in a location at the entrance to the Kibworths from the southeast and on a prominent road junction that will soon be upgraded to provide a 3-arm roundabout. The proposed development would be accessed from an additional 4th arm to this roundabout.

* Pre-School: To calculate the need for additional pre-school places arising from the committed and required levels of development in the Kibworths we can use the Leicestershire Planning Obligations Policy (2014). This document gives an average yield of 3.5 children per 100 new homes in each year group. On average, children attend nursery school for 4 years, although it is recognised that this fluctuates depending on the child care requirements of parents, and on this basis there will be a need for approximately 14 additional pre-school places per 100 new homes in the Kibworths.



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As set out above, there are 450 homes already committed to be delivered in the Kibworths during the plan period which gives a yield of approximately 63 additional pre-school aged children. In this context, it is clear that there will be a need for additional pre-school places to meet the needs generated by development over the plan period. Furthermore, as set out in Manor Oak Homes' separate representations and summarised above, we consider that the Council will need to allocate several hundred more homes in the Kibworths over the plan period which will further increase the need for additional pre-school places.

Appropriateness for Development

In addition to the clear need for the commercial and community uses proposed and the sustainability of the Kibworths as a location for growth, Manor Oak Homes is pleased to confirm that its site is available, suitable, achievable and viable for the proposed development:

Available:

The application site is within a single ownership and is wholly in the control of Manor Oak Homes. As such, no barrier exists to prevent a planning application on the site being submitted immediately and the proposed scheme being implemented immediately following achieving planning consent.

Suitable:

The site is a suitable and unconstrained location for the proposed development, as follows:

*Landscape: The site is identified in Harborough District Council's Rural Centres Landscape Capacity Study (July 2014) as having a medium capacity to accommodate development and is one of the least constrained locations to the east of the Kibworths from a landscape perspective. The Initial Landscape and Visual Appraisal prepared by Aspect Landscape Planning and contained at Enclosure 2, confirms
that the site and receiving environment have the capacity to accommodate the proposals and that the proposed development can be successfully integrated in this location.

* Heritage: The site is located away from any heritage assets with the nearest listed building over 400m to the north and Kibworth Harcourt's conservation area more than 250m away to the northwest. The site is substantially separated from these heritage assets by existing built form and vegetation and would have little to no impact from a heritage perspective.

* Ecology: The Preliminary Ecological Review prepared by Aspect Ecology and contained at Enclosure 3, confirms that the site is not constrained by any statutory or non-statutory ecological designations whilst all such designations are sufficiently separated from the site that they are unlikely to provide a constrani t on potential development proposals. The only habitats of value on the site are represented by the boundary hedgerows/vegetation and associated trees, which could adequately be accommodated and safeguarded within any appropriately designed scheme. Furthermore, opportunities exist for the incorporation of enhancement measures, including the provision of new native planting.

* Arboriculture: The Preliminary Arboricultural Appraisal preparedby Aspect Arboriculture contained at Enclosure 4 confirms that the site is largely absent of any significant tree cover, but there are some examples of high quality trees along the site's boundaries and along field boundaries within the site. It confirms that a sympathetic design such as that shown on the submitted Masterplan Sketch at Enclosure
1 would enable the integration of important trees and mitigation for low quality removals, such tha t development would enhance the arboricultural interest of the site.

* Highw ays: The Highways Improvements / Capacity Note prepared by JPP Consulting and contained at Enclosure 5, confirms that access to the development can be provided off the new roundabout which is to be constructed at the A6 / New Road junction as part of committed development. In addition , it identifies a number of highways improvements already proposed that would mitigate the impact of the development on the surrounding road network.

* Flood Risk: The site is in Flood Zone 1 (i.e . Low Risk).

Achievable:

As referred to above, a package of technical assessments has been undertaken, which confirms that there are no significant constraints to the development of the site. Accordingly, upon the grant of the necessary consents, the proposed development is considered achievable with immediate effect.

Viable: I

Manor Oak Homes is an established promoter of development sites with a track record of delivering viable planning consents. In preparing its proposals for Land at Windmill Farm, Manor Oak Homes has sought the advice of expert commercial agents who have advised that there is a good demand for all the proposed uses in the Kibworths and that the values achieved from the site would result in a viable form of development. I