®Planning appeal decision
261 Lower Luton Road, Wheathampstead, St Albans, AL4 8HW
for change of use of restaurant to veterinary practice and outline planning permission for the construction of nine shared ownership dwellings comprising 3 detached three-bedroom chalet bungalows, 2 three-bedroom end of terrace houses and 4 two-bedroom terrace houses (all matters reserved except access)
- Authority
- St Albans City Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Bartlett R
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the proposal would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt
- The effect of the development on the openness of the Green Belt
- The effect of the development on the character of the area
- If the development is inappropriate, whether the harm by reason of inappropriateness, and any other harm, is clearly outweighed by other considerations, so as to amount to the very special circumstances necessary to justify the development
What decided it
The absence of a completed legal agreement to ensure the proposed housing would be affordable and remain as such in perpetuity meant the proposal could not meet the exceptions in paragraph 149(f) of the Framework and could not be justified as very special circumstances.
The significant benefits of delivering nine affordable homes to address a critical shortfall of 4000 affordable dwellings, retaining the historic building, providing local services, and supporting rural sustainability were outweighed by the harm by definition of inappropriate development in the Green Belt arising from the lack of a mechanism to secure affordability in perpetuity
Framework references: 11, 78, 79, 149, 150
Plan policies cited: Policy 1 (Metropolitan Green Belt), Policy 2, Policy 6, Policy 8 (Affordable Housing in the Metropolitan Green Belt)
The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.