Agenda item
Brent House, 349-357 High Road, Wembley, HA9 6BZ (Ref. 15/4743)
Decision:
Planning permission granted as recommended and additional conditions on details of balconies and the canopy for disabled persons.
Minutes:
PROPOSAL: Proposed demolition of existing office building and erection of two buildings of between eight and ten storeys accommodating 248 dwellings (84 x 1-bedroom, 108 x 2-bedroom, 49 x 3-bedroom & 7 x 4-bedroom units) and flexible commercial space at ground floor (for Use Classes A1, A2, A3, A4 and/or B1(a)), new public square, landscaped communal gardens, associated landscape works, alterations to existing crossover(s) and basement car and cycle parking.
RECOMMENDATION: Grant planning permission subject to the referral to the Mayor of London and to the completion of a satisfactory Section 106 or other legal agreement and delegate authority to the Head of Planning or other duly authorised person to agree the exact terms thereof on advice from the Head of Legal Services, subject to the conditions set out in the Draft Decision Notice and additional conditions regarding drainage and vibro-impact works as set out in the supplementary report.
David Glover (Area Planning Manager) outlined the scheme and referenced the supplementary report. He clarified the servicing and parking arrangements and added that platform lifts would be provided adjacent to the main loading bay to allow goods to be moved from delivery vehicles to their destination. This measure would seek to address level changes across the site. He continued that anticipated infrastructure expected to include new schools, extensions to existing local schools, nursery places, at least 2.4ha of new public open space, improvements to accessibility of existing open space, a new community swimming pool, new health facilities (for GP's and dentists) and new multi-use community facilities would be funded from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) of £3.5 million. In addition, he understood that the applicant had agreed to the £319, 000 bus capacity enhancement contributions that TfL had identified as being required in this area. This contribution would be secured through the s106 legal agreement. He recommended a further condition as set out in the supplementary report in response to the GLA Stage 1 report and their comments on sustainable drainage.
Mark Pender (applicant’s agent), Nick Budd (Transport Consultant) and Peter Smith (applicant’s architect) attended the meeting to clarify issues raised by members. The applicant’s agent informed the Committee that an extensive consultation which engaged the GLA, TfL, local community and local schools had taken place to ensure the development made maximum use of a brownfield site in a town centre. He continued that the development, which would provide acceptable density limits, would incorporate private balconies to all flats in addition to a children’s play area.
In response to members’ questions, Mark Pender stated that full accessibility standards had been complied with including the provision of a lift service available for use by disabled persons. He anticipated demolition of the existing structure to commence within 6 months and 24 months to complete the building. The Committee heard that statutory bodies including TfL and Network Rail were consulted on the application but did not raise concerns about the applicant’s detailed noise and traffic assessment. He added that the proposal which would not raise safety issues would have a separation distance of 9 metres from the nearest building in addition to adequate capacity to accommodate servicing vehicles.
In welcoming the report, members agreed additional conditions requiring details of balconies and a covered area from the car park to assist disabled persons.
DECISION: Planning permission granted as recommended and additional conditions on details of balconies and the canopy for disabled persons.
Supporting documents: