Agenda item

Recommended for Approval.

Catherine Dove addressed the Committee in support of the application.

The Head of Planning and Building Control recommended that in respect of application 3/15/2556/VAR, subject to a deed of variation of the legal obligation agreed under ref: 3/15/0413/FUL, planning permission be granted subject to the conditions detailed in the report now submitted.

The Head of Planning and Building Control advised that Members might recall that this application had been approved in November 2015 and work was currently well underway on site.  The Head summarised the various amendments that were detailed in the report.

Members were advised that the principal amendment was the introduction of an access onto Mead Lane rather than the Link Road as originally proposed.  The Head summarised the reasons for this amendment and stated that Hertfordshire Highways were satisfied that this would not have an unacceptable impact on the highway.

Members were advised that discussions were ongoing with the Highway Authority as a result of previous planning conditions to ensure the use of the Link Road by commercial traffic was encouraged.  Officers were satisfied with the amended scheme subject to a variation of the original legal agreement plus a minor amendment to condition 6 as detailed in the late representations summary.

Councillor P A Ruffles expressed his disappointment with the principal amendment regarding the perceived need to bring traffic back onto Mead Lane.  He accepted that the change would not make a massive difference and he sought clarification regarding the likely traffic impact of vehicles exiting the site onto the Link Road or Claud Hamilton Way as it was known.

Councillor M Casey stated that he did not feel that a sufficient argument had been put forward for traffic exiting the site onto Mead Lane rather than the Link Road.  He queried why the views of Hertford Town Council appeared to have been merely noted then dismissed by the Officer’s report.

The Head explained that Officers had no detail regarding delays that might be caused by traffic exiting the site onto Mead Lane.  Members were reminded that they should consider the application before them and it would be difficult to sustain a refusal on highways grounds as Hertfordshire Highways had not objected to the application.

Councillor T Page queried the need for the Green Travel Plan referred to in the report.  He referred in particular to the scale of development that was required to necessitate a Green Travel Plan.  The Head explained the substantial benefit of diverting HGV commercial traffic onto the Link Road and this benefit would nevertheless still be achieved even though this application would result in an additional element of residential traffic accessing onto Mead Lane.

Members were reminded that an application of this scale required the applicant to consider travel options for future residents that avoided the use of the private car and this was the reason for the Green Travel Plan requirement.  The Head reminded the Committee that this was a very minor amendment to the previously approved application.  After being put to the meeting and a vote taken, the Committee accepted the recommendation of the Head of Planning and Building Control as now submitted.

RESOLVED – that in respect of application 3/15/2556/VAR, subject to a deed of variation of the legal obligation agreed under ref: 3/15/0413/FUL, planning permission be granted subject to the conditions detailed in the report now submitted.