DC/2022/02326 Shorrocks Hill Country Club Lifeboat Road Formby Liverpool L37 2EB
Hybrid planning application seeking outline consent for the erection for up to twenty-five custom-build dwellings with access to be determined and all other matters reserved; full planning permission is sought for the sitewide layout (all areas excluding housing plots); including associated infrastructure, access and landscaping; and the construction of a 100-space public car park with WC block.
Formby Parish Council stand by the comments made in the previous objection to this application. To summarise previous concerns and unresolved issues
- The application site is 4.63 hectares which is greater than the 3.3 hectares released from the green belt in the Local Plan and thus constitutes an additional release of green belt with no special circumstances. We note that the applicant suggests the proposed infrastructure within the greenbelt is not inappropriate given its nature, however NPPF Para 150 states “Certain forms of development are not inappropriate in the Green Belt provided they preserve its openness and do not conflict with the purposes of including land within it”. No rigorous assessment has been made as to whether this is the case.
- As previously stated Little Altcar Neighbourhood Plan section 4.3.2.1 notes that Formby has a “disproportionately high percentage of houses with four or more bedrooms”. The Neighbourhood Plan seeks to address this with policy H4 Housing Mix which requires development of over 15 dwellings to provide no less than 33% 1 and 2 bed properties and no more than 15% 4 or more bed properties. The applicant argues that this is not compatible with the custom-build nature of the proposal. The Parish Council’s position is that this proposal is not compatible with the Neighbourhood Plan or Sefton Local Plan.
Furthermore in Sefton Local Plan – Inspector’s Report, March 2017 “The site promoter argues that the cessation of unneighbourly activities [the closure of the nightclub] as a result of new housing (which would meet an identified need), coupled with the provision of a visitor car park, toilet block and other public facilities, would represent a mutually beneficial development”. The type of housing being offered and additional public facilities were significant factors in the decision by the Planning Inspector to include this parcel of land within the Local Plan. Without them the planning balance and case for the development is significantly weakened. - Local Plan Policy NH4 requires developments within the coastal management zone to provide wider sustainability benefits, these benefits are outlined in Sefton Local Plan policy MN2.15.
The Parish Council notes that the applicant has provided a Shadow Habitat Regulation Survey, not the Habitat Regulations Survey required by Natural England. The Parish Council is concerned that this application is being treated like an outline planning application with so much of the proposal yet to be agreed. This prevents a true assessment of environmental impact and thus undermines mitigation strategies.
Although the applicant has supplied a proposal for the management of the adjacent woodland in the short term, there are still no details provided as to how it is to be managed in perpetuity as required by policy MN2.15 or how this area is to be used in such a way as to reduce recreational pressure on the coast. Sefton Local Plan Inspectors Report para 252 states “The western boundary has been redrawn to exclude the adjacent woodland LWS from the site and the modified Plan requires the woodland to be managed and made accessible to the public (including a new bridleway) so that it can act as a buffer to the more highly protected coast”.
Once again proposals for the extension of Bridleway no 52 are absent except for an acknowledgement that the applicant is willing to discuss this.
- With regard to the Traffic Statement submitted in support of the application, the Parish Council refer to our previous objection.
- In response to the Bat Survey the proposal will degrade foraging habitat for the Brown Long-eared Bat, who prefer light woodland over built up areas, and threatens commuting corridors for all bats using the site. Additionally the survey seemed to concern itself with the potential for bats to be roosting in the buildings on site, however both common and soprano pipistrelle bats roost in tree holes, and are known to favour trees in poor condition. No consideration of this has been made in either bat survey and no mitigation offered.
- Further to the above the Parish Council notes that the applicant regards the required car park as an overspill to National Trust’s parking, when it could equally be of use to the neighbouring Church and Church hall to provide additional parking throughout the year. Currently the National Trust charge a single whole day tariff for parking at Formby Point. Any new car park should offer a different charging regime and offer some competition to the National trust.
For the reasons listed above we would ask that this application be refused.
Yours sincerely
Claire Jenkins BA hons
Parish Clerk