Agenda and minutes

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The Local Review Body considered the request for a review for the proposed house alterations and extension to form an annex accommodation at Invercraig, Skene Road Aberdeen, 180980.

The Chairperson advised that the LRB would be addressed by Mr Gavin Evans and reminded Members that although Mr Evans was employed by the planning authority he had not been involved in any way with the consideration or determination of the application under review and was present to provide factual information and guidance to the Body only.  She emphasised that the officer would not be asked to express any view on the proposed application.

In relation to the application, the LRB had before it (1) a delegated report by Jane Forbes, Planning Technician; (2) the application dated 14 June 2018; (3) the decision notice dated 5 February 2019 (4) links to the plans showing the proposal and planning policies referred to in the delegated report; and (5) the Notice of Review submitted by the agent along with an accompanying statement with further information relating to the application.

The LRB was then addressed by Mr Evans who advised that the review had been submitted with all necessary information within the time limit of three months following the decision of the appointed officer.

Mr Evans indicated that within the Notice of Review, new matters were raised, which were not before the appointed officer at the time of the original decision.  This new information related to the size of the original house, and the applicant indicated that this information was not available at the time of the appointed officer’s determination.  The LRB agreed unanimously not to accept this additional information as it was historic information and could have been readily available to give to the original appointed officer.

Mr Evans then described the site advising that the application site was located on the southern side of Skene Road, approximately 150m east of the A944/Land Stracht roundabout junction, and was one of 6 properties served by a short curve of service road. The generous plot extends to approximately 2100sqm, and featured mature trees along its southern and eastern boundaries.

Mr Evans advised that Invercraig, which was the easternmost of those 6 south-facing plots, was a detached granite dwelling of a traditional style, incorporating bay windows, dormer windows and a slated roof with clay ridge tiles.  It was noted that this property was not representative of the others in this group, which were mid-20^th century bungalow style dwellings.   Invercraig presented a 1.5 storey face to the service road, but due to the ground level dropping away to the north, also included a basement level. The western gable features a lean-to style extension which wraps around the North West corner of the building and onto the rear elevation at basement level. A pitched roof double garage was constructed off the eastern gable, constructed in granite and slate. The property had an open southern aspect, looking out across the neighbouring farmland.

In terms of consultee  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.

At this juncture, Councillor Marie Boulton left the meeting and Councillor Jennifer Stewart chaired the following review.

The Local Review Body then considered a second request for a review to evaluate the decision taken by an appointed officer under the Council’s Scheme of Delegation to refuse the application for the erection of a dwellinghouse with associated infrastructure and landscaping, at land to the north of Brookden, 181993.

The Chairperson advised that the LRB would again be addressed by Mr Gavin Evans and reminded Members that although Mr Evans was employed by the planning authority he had not been involved in any way with the consideration or determination of the application under review and was present to provide factual information and guidance to the Body only.  She emphasised that the officer would not be asked to express any view on the proposed application.

In relation to the application, the LRB had before it (1) a delegated report by Mr Jamie Leadbeater, Planner (2) the application dated 22 November 2018; (3) the decision notice dated 22 January 2019 (4) links to the plans showing the proposal and planning policies referred to in the delegated report; (5) the Notice of Review submitted by the applicant and (6) consultee comments.

The LRB was then addressed by Mr Evans who advised that the review had been submitted with all necessary information within the time limit of three months following the decision of the appointed officer.

Mr Evans then described the site advising that the application sought Planning Permission in Principle (PPP) for the erection of a new detached dwellinghouse with associated infrastructure and landscaping.   A tree survey accompanying the application recommended the removal of 36 individual trees for reasons of good arboricultural management and Mr Evans advised there were no trees present on the indicative site of the dwelling, however detailed consideration of impacts could be undertaken on assessment of MSC applications.

Mr Evans also advised that the application site extended to approximately 0.8ha and was located on the east side of Murtle Den Road, a private road which branched off north from North Deeside Road, between established settlements at Bieldside and Milltimber.  Murtle Den Road was an attractive tree-lined avenue of approximately 800m, which offered no through route and provided access to approximately 13 properties. The houses accessed via Murtle Den Road were generally large detached dwellings, set within generous plots. The current application site sits approximately 400m along this private road, to the north of an existing dwelling at Brookden and south of the large plot of Pinelands.  Murtle Dam was located to the west of Murtle Den Road, and sits within 20m to the North East of the current application site. The site, which slopes steeply from West to East, was an area of grassland, with mature trees around its perimeter, with particularly strong tree belts along the western and southern boundaries.  To the west of Murtle Den Road there was an area of 49ha which was allocated for development through the 2017 Aberdeen Local Development Plan. The OP48 allocation identified an opportunity for the development of 550 homes  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.