MAZE Planning Solutions has submitted an outline planning application for development of 7 houses in the village of High Spen, Gateshead, on behalf of the owner, Northern Properties.
Maze first secured planning permission for development on the site in 2006. The revised scheme provides an alternative form of housing to appeal to the current market and preserves an existing home on the site which was previously due to be sacrificed to the development scheme.
Click here for a 3D image of the proposed scheme
Interested purchasers can contact Stephen Smith at Ashley Smith Chartered Surveyors in Durham for further details.
Thursday, 6 September 2012
Wednesday, 4 July 2012
Planning Application Fees - Autumn Increase
Decentralisation Minister, Greg Clark has issued a written statement this afternoon, announcing an increase in planning application fees of 15%, which will take effect in the autumn.Current fee rates were set in 2008 and the proposed increase is described by Clark a "one-off adjustment to up-rate fees in line with inflation".
The increase is intended to address a shortfall in fee income against the cost of processing applications, the balance of which Clark says, "has to be subsidised by ordinary council tax payers, who end up subsidising the planning process".
The announcement seems to have ended the possibility of Local Authorities being able to set their own planning application fee rates - that change to the present system was subject to consultation in November 2010, launched by Greg Clark.
Friday, 1 June 2012
Rossendale United - Planning Application Imminent
Coverage in this week's Lancashire Telegraph confirms that preparations for submission of a planning application for housing development on the former Rossendale United football ground are at an advanced stage.
MAZE Planning Solutions is leading the application process, following on from public consultation undertaken during the spring which sought feedback on the proposed 50 home development.
Click here to read the Lancashire Telegraph Article.
MAZE Planning Solutions is leading the application process, following on from public consultation undertaken during the spring which sought feedback on the proposed 50 home development.
Click here to read the Lancashire Telegraph Article.
The Importance of Proof
If, like Maze Planning, you are involved in making or determining 'prior approval' applications for development, the landscape has just changed.
The 'prior approval' process is most commonly used for telecoms masts and antennae, agricultural and forestry development, and before demolition of buildings, to give local planning authorities an opportunity to consider if the proposal is Permitted Development (ie not requiring an application for planning permission) and that the details of the particular scheme, such as those relating to siting and materials, are acceptable.
The requirement to seek 'prior approval' is matched by strict time limits which local authorities must adhere to when dealing with the submission. If a local authority sends no notification within the specified time limit, then the prior approval process is deemed to have been satisfied and the development can go ahead in the form submitted.
A recent legal case has directed that a local authority must be able to prove that it sent a timely response if it is later to rely on that to query the development concerned. In effect, nothing short of recorded delivery will do to ensure there is proof of both sending and subsequent receipt by the applicant.
The cases in Walsall and Dartford both concerned telecoms mast development, where the local authorities had come to the view that the proposed development was not Permitted Development, and should be rejected. Letters to that effect were posted but the applicants later said they were never received, so they pressed ahead with the mast installations. The judge concluded that the local authority notifications could not be deemed to have been properly served at the time of posting because it was key that the relevant information reached the applicant - the simple act of posting did not guarantee that outcome, and was refutable evidence.
Applicants are not going to actively pursue the receipt of timely prior approval decisions because it is to their advantage that the prescribed determination period passes without event, so the responsibility, and burden of proof for timely notification, rests firmly with the determining authority.
There are alternatives to recorded delivery notification - good old fax, if that line of communication is available, and email, so long as there's a follow up mechanism in place to ensure that the email is received by the correct person / organisation and acknowledged within the statutory time limit. Rightly or wrongly, anything less robust can quite simply be denied by the Applicant.
The 'prior approval' process is most commonly used for telecoms masts and antennae, agricultural and forestry development, and before demolition of buildings, to give local planning authorities an opportunity to consider if the proposal is Permitted Development (ie not requiring an application for planning permission) and that the details of the particular scheme, such as those relating to siting and materials, are acceptable.
The requirement to seek 'prior approval' is matched by strict time limits which local authorities must adhere to when dealing with the submission. If a local authority sends no notification within the specified time limit, then the prior approval process is deemed to have been satisfied and the development can go ahead in the form submitted.
A recent legal case has directed that a local authority must be able to prove that it sent a timely response if it is later to rely on that to query the development concerned. In effect, nothing short of recorded delivery will do to ensure there is proof of both sending and subsequent receipt by the applicant.
The cases in Walsall and Dartford both concerned telecoms mast development, where the local authorities had come to the view that the proposed development was not Permitted Development, and should be rejected. Letters to that effect were posted but the applicants later said they were never received, so they pressed ahead with the mast installations. The judge concluded that the local authority notifications could not be deemed to have been properly served at the time of posting because it was key that the relevant information reached the applicant - the simple act of posting did not guarantee that outcome, and was refutable evidence.
Applicants are not going to actively pursue the receipt of timely prior approval decisions because it is to their advantage that the prescribed determination period passes without event, so the responsibility, and burden of proof for timely notification, rests firmly with the determining authority.
There are alternatives to recorded delivery notification - good old fax, if that line of communication is available, and email, so long as there's a follow up mechanism in place to ensure that the email is received by the correct person / organisation and acknowledged within the statutory time limit. Rightly or wrongly, anything less robust can quite simply be denied by the Applicant.
Tuesday, 15 May 2012
Malvern Retail Park Extension
The Malvern Gazette has reported details of MAZE Planning's application for extension of Malvern Shopping Park made on behalf of the owner Consolidated Property Group in April 2012. The article reassures local readers that Malvern town centre is in good health, with few vacancies and typically fast turnaround of any space that does become available.
The planning application proposes development of two additional units, extending the existing retail park by 252 square metres. If approved the new units will have permission for dual use, allowing occupation for both retail and cafe/restaurant uses. A decision on the planning application is expected in early June.
Read the Malvern Gazette article here
The planning application proposes development of two additional units, extending the existing retail park by 252 square metres. If approved the new units will have permission for dual use, allowing occupation for both retail and cafe/restaurant uses. A decision on the planning application is expected in early June.
Read the Malvern Gazette article here
Thursday, 19 April 2012
Medical Practice Approved for Bury
Indigo Healthcare will be bringing its private primary health care services to Bury following approval earlier this week of its proposals to take occupation of Hilton House. The town centre building, located on Irwell Street next to Castle Leisure Centre, had been empty for several months following the departure of the Council's Children's Services team.
Indigo is relocating from the neighbouring borough of Rossendale and expects to create a number of new jobs when the practice is established in its new home.
MAZE Planning Solutions handled the planning application for change of use of the building, assisted by FuZED Architecture + Design.
Indigo is relocating from the neighbouring borough of Rossendale and expects to create a number of new jobs when the practice is established in its new home.
MAZE Planning Solutions handled the planning application for change of use of the building, assisted by FuZED Architecture + Design.
Monday, 2 April 2012
Concert Events Approved at Globe Arena
Morecambe Football Club's plans for music concerts at its Globe Arena stadium have been approved today by Lancaster City Council's planning committee. The permission comes after 9 months of negotiation and discussion led by MAZE Planning Solutions, required to overcome a wide range of concerns about noise, traffic and event management raised by the local authority, police and Lancashire County Council.
Morecambe FC will be allowed to hold three days of live music events each year, with the potential to attract up to 12,000 music fans each day. It's likely the event will take the form of a festival spanning 2 or 3 consecutive days during the closed football season so full use can be made of the stadium
Most Planning Committee Members were keen to enable an event to be held to capture tourism benefits for the resort, balancing that against the need to protect the amenity of local residents. A temporary planning permission has been given, which allows the Football Club's commitment to good working practices for event management and noise control to be demonstrated.
MAZE led the planning process, assisted by the Manchester office of Hepworth Acoustics, which provided specialist noise modelling expertise.
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