Councillors Reject Plans to Build Housing on Former Village Pub Site in Rhondda Cynon Taf

Councillors have officially rejected plans to build housing on the site of a former village pub in Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT).
The planning application and conservation area consent application relate to the proposed demolition of the modern side extension, store/office and garage at the former Fox and Hounds pub in Llanharan Road, Llanharry and the building of two houses within the car park.
But at a meeting on Thursday, October 8, RCT’s planning committee confirmed its decision to refuse the plans.
The plans originally went before the planning committee on September 3 where members decided that they were minded to refuse the application, against the recommendation of officers, due to concerns about overdevelopment, design and location, highway safety, and alignment with the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. 
This meant the application was deferred for a further report to highlight the potential strengths and weaknesses of taking a decision against the officer recommendation. 
There were eight public letters of representation or objection to the planning application and three letters of support. 
There were four letters of objection to the conservation area consent application and one of support.
The reason for refusal of the planning application was: “The proposed development, by reason of its location, scale, design and layout, would result in an unacceptable form of development that fails to provide safe and suitable access for all users and would be detrimental to highway and pedestrian safety, having regard to the substandard pedestrian environment serving the site and the loss of parking associated with the retained commercial use.
“Furthermore, the introduction of two identical dwellings within this constrained and prominent edge-of-settlement site would constitute an incongruous and overly intensive form of development that fails to respond positively to the character, appearance and local distinctiveness of the area.
“Accordingly, the proposal is contrary to Policies AW2, AW5 and AW6 of the Rhondda Cynon Taf Local Development Plan. 
Planning officers in recommending approval had said that the proposed development represents an “acceptable and sustainable” form of redevelopment within the settlement boundary, making a modest contribution to local housing supply whilst preserving the character and appearance of the Llanharry Conservation Area and the significance of nearby heritage assets. 
They said that the proposal would not result in unacceptable impacts on residential amenity, highway safety or biodiversity, subject to appropriate planning conditions.
In relation to the conservation area consent, the reason for refusal was: “The proposed demolition works form an integral part of a comprehensive redevelopment scheme which, when considered as a whole, would fail to preserve or enhance the character and appearance of the Llanharry Conservation Area. 
“The demolition would facilitate the erection of two dwellings whose scale, form, layout, design and prominence would result in an incongruous and overly intensive form of development that would erode the area’s established character, appearance and historic interest.
“In these circumstances the demolition works cannot be divorced from the redevelopment they are intended to facilitate and the overall scheme is considered to conflict with the statutory objective of preserving or enhancing the character or appearance of the conservation area.”
In recommending approval, planning officers had said that the proposed demolition works and associated redevelopment have been designed with appropriate regard to the character, appearance and setting of the site within the Llanharry Conservation Area. 
They said that the removal of later, unsympathetic additions, together with the sensitive siting and design of the proposed dwellings, would preserve the key characteristics of the area and maintain its overall historic interest.
Councillor Jayne Smith said she’d given it some serious consideration and she thought there were more weaknesses than strengths in what they decided.
She said she fully recognised the importance of the Well-being of Future Generations Act and the valuable contribution that pubs, local shops and other community facilities make to the strength, identity and social fabric of our communities.
But she said when determining planning applications they’ve got to do it within the statutory planning framework and while the Act is an important piece of legislation its principles are already reflected in national planning policy and the adopted development plan through which matters such as sustainability, placemaking and community wellbeing are assessed.
She said that while the concerns are entirely legitimate she had to agree with officers’ advice that the Act should not be relied upon as a standalone reason for refusal.
But Councillor Mike Powell said he thought they had robust reasons to refuse the application.
He said there had been cases where the Act had been used and he would still advocate refusing the application based upon the reasons they put forward earlier.
Councillor Wayne Owen asked where people using the two businesses on the site would park if they took the car park away.
Councillor Wendy Lewis said they’d spent a lot of time on this application and that she wouldn’t be supporting the motion to approve the application. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

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By BBC LDRS ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​