Agenda item

(1)       Mr M A C Balfour informed the Committee that he was the Local Member for this application.  As he had not commented on this application in this capacity or as a Borough Councillor, he was able to approach its determination with an open mind.

(2)       Mrs S Hamilton was present for this item and addressed the Committee.

(3)       The Committee added an additional Informative drawing attention to the views of the Environment Agency in respect of several invasive non-native species (i.e. Giant Hogweed and Winter Heliotrope) known to be locally present and that it is illegal to cause them to be spread elsewhere.  Attention was also drawn to the Agency’s guidance on potential biosecurity protocols that should be followed.

(4)       Mr H Rayner informed the Committee that as he had not been able to be present for the entire discussion of this application, he would not participate in its determination.

(5)       On being put to the vote, the recommendations of the Head of Planning Applications Group (which had been seconded by Mr J Wright after having been formally moved by the Chairman)  were unanimously agreed as amended in (3) above.

(6)     RESOLVED that:-

(a)          the Application be approved subject to a condition specifying that no further works take place (including ground works and vegetation clearance)untila methodstatement forthe protectionof biodiversity hasbeen submittedto andapprovedin writingby KCC.  The methodstatement,which shall beinformedby anappended up-to-datepreliminary ecological appraisal (PEA)and (asnecessary)protectedspeciessurveysshallbe implementedas approved; and

(b)          the applicants be advised by Informative that:-

(i)           ifthe PEAandprotectedspeciessurveysindicatethat someor all ofthe furtherworksare ecologicallyunacceptable, itwill be necessaryfortherestorationschemeto be revisitedandfurther revised; and

(ii)       in undertaking the development, attention is drawn to the views of the Environment Agency in respect of several invasive non-native species (i.e. Giant Hogweed and Winter Heliotrope) known to be locally present and that it is illegal to cause them to be spread elsewhere.  Attention is drawn to the Agency’s guidance on potential biosecurity protocols that should be followed.