Agenda item

The Committee then moved on to consider the last application of the meeting – item 6(c) application number 146210 seeking planning permission for the installation of solar PV panels on land at Top House Farm, Grimsby Road, Caistor.  The application had been referred to the Committee following the receipt of third party representations.

The Chairman invited the Planning Officer to present the report, concerning which there were no updates.

The Chairman welcomed Mr Bruno Hickson, the agent representing the developers who addressed the Committee along the following lines:-

“Good evening. This is a statement on behalf of the board of the Rock Foundation.  We are a charity that provides for some of the most vulnerable people in our area.

We have learning disabled adults and students and their carers, who are dependent on day service provision.  We have residents for whom supported living provides them with the security and stability that is critical to their lives and well-being.  As an organisation, we have invested heavily in Top House Farm, a Grade II listed building, to ensure that it is maintained to a high standard.

It has become a valued rural enterprise on which many in the local community have come to rely.  The community allotment and the tea rooms are popular and a valuable resource.

However, a Grade II listed status and the design of the building means our options to achieve an affordable and sustainable energy supply and thereby reduce our own carbon footprint, are very limited.

Without provision for solar panels, ongoing energy costs have taken a significant chunk of our finances and this directly affects our future and the essential services that we provide. We have chosen a design that is purposely very low profile.

We believe that the proposal does not have a significant impact on the environment, being relatively small and low in height.  The proposal will provide low cost energy to our charity and ensure that the facilities that we provide to disabled students, adults, our residents and the carers and the local community can be maintained in the long term.  Thank you”.

The Chairman thanked Mr Hickson for his contribution and invited the Planning Officer to comment.  The Planning Officer indicated that he had nothing further to add to his opening remarks. The application was then opened up for discussion by the Committee.

Reference was made to the sowing of wild flower seeds as part of the landscaping scheme and it was felt that a note of the Committee’s expectations in this respect should be added to the grant of permission if approved.

A number of comments were made about the location of the panels and Members were advised that following discussions with the Council’s Conservation Officer it had been felt that the location proposed in the application would be the least intrusive to the setting of the listed building.  However, it was proposed and seconded that a site visit should take place to enable members to satisfy themselves that the proposed location of the panels was the right one within the context of the setting of the listed building.

Having been proposed and seconded, upon being put to the vote, the proposition for the Committee to make a site visit was LOST.

It was thereupon proposed and seconded that the report recommendations be approved and this was carried by a majority vote. 

Accordingly it was agreed that permission should be GRANTED subject to the following conditions and a note concerning the Committee’s expectations in relation to the landscaping scheme with particular regard to the sowing of wild flower seeds:-

Conditions stating the time by which the development must be commenced:

1.    The development hereby permitted shall be begun before the expiration of three years from the date of this permission.

Reason: To conform with Section 91 (1) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended).

Conditions which apply or require matters to be agreed before the development commenced:

None.

Conditions which apply or are to be observed during the course of the development:

2.    With the exception of the detailed matters referred to by the conditions of this consent, the development hereby approved shall be carried out in accordance with the following drawings: Site Layout/Block Plan, Proposed Site Layout/Block Plan, Proposed Panel Details, Proposed Elevations and Site Location Plan (1:2500), received 7^th March 2023 and Rock Foundation – Layout, received 31^st March 2023. The works shall be carried out in accordance with the details shown on the approved plans and in any other approved documents forming part of the application.

Reason: To ensure the development proceeds in accordance with the approved plans and to accord with the National Planning Policy Framework and Policy S53 of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan.

3.    The development must be completed in strict accordance with the solar panel specification shown on the Proposed Panel Details and Proposed Elevations, received 7^th March 2023.

Reason: To ensure the use of appropriate materials to accord with the National Planning Policy Framework and Policy S53 of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan.

4.    Any construction activities and deliveries of solar panels, equipment or machinery related to the development shall only be carried out during the following hours:

                         i.         Monday to Friday: Between 7:00 AM and 6:00 PM.

                       ii.         Saturdays: Between 8:00 AM and 1:00 PM.

                      iii.         No construction activities shall be permitted on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

Reason: To ensure that the construction period does not result in any unacceptable impact on the amenity of the occupiers of nearby dwellings in accordance with Policy S53 of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan and paragraph 130 f) of the National Planning Policy Framework.

5.    Prior to the first use of the development, full and final landscaping details, including the proposed enhancements and type of planting shall be provided to and agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

Once the details have been agreed the planting shall be carried out in the first planting and seeding season following the completion of the development, whichever is sooner; and any planting which within a period of 5 years from the completion of the development die, are removed, or become seriously damaged or diseased must be replaced in the next planting season with others of similar size and species, unless the Local Planning Authority gives written consent to any variation. The landscaping should be retained thereafter.

Reason: To ensure that appropriate landscaping is introduced to enhance the character and appearance of the site and to accord with Policies S60 and S61 of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan.

Conditions which apply or relate to matters which are to be observed following completion of the development:

6.    The solar PV equipment shall be removed as soon as reasonably practicable when no longer needed.

Reason: To minimise the impact of the proposed development on the character and appearance of the area and to minimise the impact of the proposed development on the setting and significance of nearby heritage assets in accordance with the National Planning Policy Framework and Policies S53, S57 and S62 of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan.