Issue - meetings

Replacement of existing police station with new custody facility and office accommodation in four storey building for police use, including retention of façade of the original building.

RECOMMENDATION: Grant permission subject to conditions.

The Committee considered a report, previously circulated, which set out details of the application, the site and surroundings, planning history, relevant planning policy, consultation and responses and analysis. The report recommended that the application be granted, subject to conditions. The Planning Officer gave a presentation on key elements of the report, and advised that while no details of the internal layout or design of the custody suite could be provided for security reasons, the design standards for this would be as set out by the Home Office design guide for police buildings and other relevant guidance. It was also confirmed that if the custody suite at Wood Green were full, the central cell allocation service would identify the nearest police station with available space for allocation to any new detainee.

The Committee was advised of two proposed variations to the conditions as set out in the report; in relation to condition 4 regarding noise levels, it was proposed that this condition be changed such that with the exception of the emergency generator, the noise level would be as set out in the existing condition, but with the emergency generator running, the noise could be above the background noise level; in relation to condition 19 on disabled parking spaces, the Metropolitan Police had requested that of the 4 disabled parking bays marked out, three of these could be used for operational vehicles at times when the disabled parking spaces were not required.

The Committee examined the plans and discussed the application. In relation to concerns raised that prisoners should not be held in the custody suite for more than 72 hours, officers advised that this was not a material planning consideration, and that the use of the custody suite was ancillary to the primary use as a police station; therefore, any condition added in respect of use of the custody suite would be outside the Committee’s remit. In response to concerns raised regarding potential issues with vehicles associated with the police station parking at property owned by addressed as part of the Travel Plan, which was covered by the proposed condition 20 as set out in the report.

Concern was expressed that it should be clear that the custody suite at Wood green was not to be used for remand prisoners, and it was moved by Cllr Schmitz that an informative be added limiting the maximum amount of time that prisoners could be kept in the custody suite to 72-hours. On a vote of 2 in favour and 7 against, this motion fell.

The Chair moved the recommendations of the report, with the amendments to the conditions in respect of external noise and disabled parking, and on a vote of 8 in favour and 1 against it was:

RESOLVED

1)       That planning permission be granted in accordance with planning application reference HGY/2011/1094 subject to a pre-condition that the applicant shall first have entered into an agreement or agreements with the London Borough of Haringey (under Section 106 of the Town and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 77