Fen Ditton Parish Council

Minutes of a Meeting of the Parish Council’s Planning Committee held on Tuesday 1^st June 2010

FEN DITTON PARISH COUNCIL

Chairman – Councillor Charles Jones

Minutes of a Meeting of the Parish Council’s Planning Committee held on Tuesday 1^st June 2010

at the Recreation Ground Pavilion

Present:

Councillors: A. Cram, M. Easterfield, I. Harvey, C. Jones, J. Parr, G. Peel, L.Woolfenden
N. Clarke, R. Turner

Parish Clerk: M. Starkie

The meeting was called to consider the following Planning Applications:

a) S/0349/10/F – Demolish existing Public House and erect a 41-bedroom residential care home at 2 Horningsea Road

b) S/0350/10/CAC (Conservation Area Consent) – Demolition of Public House at 2 Horningsea Road

It immediately preceded the monthly Parish Council Meeting.
Members of the public were invited to address the Council at the Chairman’s discretion during the meeting.

1. Apologies for absence
   Clrs. Green and Snellgrove Hawkins sent their apologies
   

2. Declarations of interest
   There were no declarations of interest
   

Discussion
Seventeen members of the public attended the meeting. The following points were discussed fully:
Generally villagers did not oppose the scheme but felt it was too large for the site. This position is central to the village and would have considerable visual impact.
There were insufficient parking spaces for the number of staff required for a 41-bed home and buses run only once a day. Deliveries had to be accommodated and there was concern that there would be parking in High Street and High Ditch Road.
Entrance to the car park was adjacent to the path leading to the school.

This is a conservation area and the elevations and flat roofs were not in keeping with other properties.
Size of rooms did not appear to be appropriate for dementia patients
Lighting issues.
Respite care is becoming increasingly important but is not mentioned in the application
There may be advantages for the village with the provision of jobs, residential care as villagers age, S106 and Highways contributions
The current building is redundant as a public house facility and a replacement building would be preferable
Only one person opposed the demolition of the current building. It was recognized that site security would be needed after demolition.

Clrs. Clarke and Turner both assured villagers that the planning officer would monitor all regulations for size of rooms, parking, building regulations etc

Clr. Jones said the council would vote at the end of the scheduled monthly meeting. He thanked the members of the public for their input.

The meeting closed at 20.05