MINUTES of the Extra-ordinary Parish Council meeting held in the School, Back Lane, on Monday 15 April 2013 commencing at 6pm.
PRESENT Cllr R Porter, Chairman.
Cllrs J O’Keefe, C Moore, M Turner, R Richardson, J Citarella, C Gillard and Clerk, S Jones.
County Cllr Westley, Borough Cllr Pope and 35 members of the public attended.
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TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES There were no apologies – all Councillors were present.
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DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST AND DISPENSATION REQUESTS
There were no declarations of interest or dispensation requests.
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PLANNING APPLICATION 2012/1317/COU – Forest View Nurseries - Change of use of part of the existing horticultural business to a camping and caravan park comprising an area for tents, touring caravans and up to 25 static caravans with ancillary toilet/shower block and maintenance building. Conversion of existing irrigation pond to a fishing pond for use by visitors to the park.
A proposed response to the planning application was presented to Councillors. It was resolved unanimously by all Councillors to submit the response below to West Lancashire Borough Council.
Planning Application 2012/1317/COU
Newburgh Parish Council believes the case for this application rests on whether very special circumstances outweigh the impact of the development on the Green Belt.
Green Belt
While it may be argued that the visual impact of the site is reduced by the tall trees screening the area, Newburgh Parish Council contends that the presence of 25 permanent caravans, up to 20 touring caravans, 20 tents, an unquantified number of camper vans, the accompanying vehicles and the shower block together represent an unacceptable intrusion into the openness of Green Belt, notwithstanding what has occupied the site before.
Very special circumstances
The case is based on the contribution the holiday park will make to the local rural economy and to tourism. However only generic tourist industry data is used to support the argument that the site will succeed. No evidence or experience is adduced from other comparable sites and there is no business case to demonstrate the success potential of this site as a holiday park. No context is provided that allows any assessment to be made of the economic impact on Newburgh which is not a tourist village and which has little infrastructure to benefit from it. No case is made for visitors using this site as opposed to the other competitor sites in the area.
If the project is an act of faith and if no case for the success of this specific site can be made, there are no very special circumstances that outweigh the impact on the Green Belt.
The case is further weakened by two additional factors: traffic and safety; and noise impact.
Traffic and safety
Newburgh Parish Council believes the nature and volume of traffic that may be generated by the holiday park are totally unsuitable for a country lane, in part single track, in part without footpaths, with a blind bend and with a narrow canal bridge. The lane passes though a residential area with school, church and play area where public safety is paramount.
While comment is still awaited from LCC Highways, the experience of residents and simple observation are enough to indicate that the junction between Back Lane and the A5209 at the entrance to the village is potentially dangerous given the blind bend and the space required to pull caravans on to the highway. In addition, the site entrance/exit through a single gateway does not provide for safe access from and into Back Lane.
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Noise
The holiday park is in a tranquil area of the village and the site is very near a number of houses. Whatever noise controls may be attempted by site management, there can be no doubt that the tranquillity of the area will be disturbed simply because there are potentially a large number of people enjoying themselves on holiday.
Conclusion
This proposal impacts Green Belt, presents no convincing “very special circumstances”, does not deliver clear benefits to the village, creates hazards, disturbs tranquillity and in short does not fit the character of the village we want to retain.
Newburgh Parish Council objects to the application.
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REQUEST BY RESIDENTS FOR PARISH COUNCIL TO SUPPORT FUNDING FOR PUBLICITY DOCUMENTATION FOR PLANNING APPLICATION 2012/1317/COU
It was resolved that the Parish Council would not contribute towards funding for publicity documentation relating to planning application 2012/1317/COU. Advice sought from the Executive Secretary of the Lancashire Association of Local Councils (LALC) stated that expenditure on this activity was inappropriate, especially as not all residents may be in opposition to the planning application. It was confirmed that similar signs in neighbouring areas had been funded privately through local residents’ groups. It was pointed out to residents that the Parish Council had notified all residents of the planning application by way of a leaflet and had also funded two additional meetings regarding the application.
The Chairman closed the meeting. Residents were invited to stay behind if they wished to raise questions regarding the planning process with Cllrs Westley and Pope.
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