Extraordinary meeting of Fulking Parish Council (FPC) held on Tuesday 2nd March 2021 at 7pm via Microsoft Teams.
Present: Councillors Mark Hind, (Acting Chairman), Linda Dyos, Karen Healy, Samantha Leader, Lucy Mehta and Trevor Parsons (Clerk)
There were no members of the public in attendance.
The meeting opened at 19:06
AGENDA
21/025/PM. Apologies for Absence.
There were no apologies for absence
21/026/PM. Declaration of Members’ Interests.
Acting Chairman, Mark Hind declared an interest in agenda item 21/028/PM as he is a close neighbour in Stammers Hill. Therefore, Cllr Hind left the Video Meeting after item 21/07 and took no part in the discussion or decision.
21/027/PM. Planning matters
Location: SDNP/20/05150/FUL Hillside Poynings Road Fulking BN5 9NB
Proposal: Proposed ancillary storage building, with associated access area, together with biodiversity and landscape enhancements, public footpath and related structures.
Background
As you walk up the Bridleway from Poynings Road towards Hillside you are met with several large yellow CCTV warning signs belonging to the property. Just before you arrive, the 3m high (often chained) wooden gates and fence come into view revealing a secure residential compound, which is not in keeping with the rural landscape around it. Footpath 5-1F is bounded on its southern side by the high fence denying the public views of Fulking escarpment. This a significant contrast to the previous wooden house which sat unobtrusively within the landscape. The intrusive fencing, CCTV signs and oversized gate suggest a lack of sensitivity towards the surrounding natural environment of the South Downs.
The site photo section 1.2 page 4 of Molloy Report shows part of the intrusive security fencing.
Proposal
The proposed development site is located in a plot of land that was excavated (apparently without the correct permissions) to create a compound to store building materials for construction of the approved residential property. The proposal is to add significant permanent storage avoiding the need to return this land to its previous condition.
We do not agree with the Molloy Architects conclusion that these proposals are a material change and/or improvement following the pre application advice given under SDNP/19/02453/PRE.
In addition, our concern is that approval of this proposal will extend the scale of the existing compound with the applicants using permitted development rights to significantly expand their unsympathetic security fencing to encompass their land. We believe this development will create visual harm to the landscape in this protected area.
In relation to the new storage building, it was noted that:
- The house is already 45% larger than the original building outlined in SDNP/15/02392.
- There is real concern that the storage will be turned into a separate dwelling.
- Although the proposal states that the landscape will be returned to its former condition, no previous attempt has been made to reconstitute the land to what it was.
In relation to the moving of the PROW it was noted that the proposed new path will:
- Create a health and safety hazard for the public – it will be steeper than the current path and being constructed from board walk planks, will very likely become slippery when there is a lot of rain. There will also be a question of who will maintain the path.
- Deny public access to a historic right of way for no good reason
- Damage the biodiversity of the escarpment to build a new footpath
- Enable the applicants to enclose a significant area of currently open land
Additional Note – SDNP Dark Skies
As stated above the fencing and gate of the existing property is very intrusive viewed from close up but during daylight hours from a distance the property is much less visible. Unfortunately, in the dark, the light spilling from the panoramic floor to ceiling windows on the eastern side of the property is very conspicuous. It is visible from several miles away and creates the impression that an alien space craft has landed at the base of Fulking escarpment. We find it difficult to believe that this was the intended outcome of the dark sky restrictions imposed on the original planning approval and would ask the SDNP to investigate further.
Councillors voted UNANIMOUSLY AGAINST the application.
21/028/PM. Planning matters
Location: SDNP/21/00722/HOUS 8 Stammers Hill Fulking BN5 9NA
Proposal: Conversion of car port to additional accommodation including external alterations
It was noted that:
the loss of the on-site parking appears to contravene section 3.2 of the SDNP Local Plan and that there is no off-street parking available in Stammers Hill and thus creating yet further pressure on lack of parking provision on the High Street and in the village generally which is already problematic.
Councillors voted UNANIMOUSLY AGAINST the application.
The meeting closed at 19:45pm
Date of the next Ordinary Meeting: Thursday 15th April 2021.