Issue - meetings

Demolition and rebuilding of existing dwelling with basement floor and erection of a new two-storey house with basement floor to the front of the site (AMENDED DESCRIPTION).

RECOMMENDATION: Grant planning permission, subject to conditions.

The Committee considered a report, previously circulated, on the application for planning permission at 12 Denewood Road, N6. The report set out details of the site and surroundings, images of the site as existing and proposed, details of the proposal, planning history, relevant planning policy, consultation and responses, assessment of the application and human rights and equalities issues and recommended that the application be granted, subject to conditions. The Planning Officer gave a presentation highlighting the key aspects of the report, and circulated two letters received after the circulation of the Committee report, one from Geotechnical and Environmental Associates and one from a neighbouring resident in objection to the application.

In response to a question from the Committee, it was confirmed that the application remained unchanged from that deferred from the special Sub-Committee meeting on 30 July.

Cllr Rachel Allison addressed the Committee in objection to the application on behalf of local residents and the Highgate Society, and Dr Tom Davidson also spoke in objection. The following points were raised by the objectors:

• The proposal represented overdevelopment of the site, as there had never been two houses on the site at the same time.
• Allowing two houses on the site would set a worrying precedent for the area and could lead to a erosion of the character of the Conservation Area.
• This application would involve two large basements, one of double-depth as it would contain a swimming pool; there were recognised problems in the area in respect of the water table, and concern was expressed that this may lead to further problems.
• There was concern that no intrusive assessment of the potential impact of the basement had been undertaken at the site itself.
• Given the existing problems in the area and the size of the proposed basements, the proposal would lead to a significant risk of harm being caused.

The Committee questioned the objectors, and the following issues were raised in the course of the questions and responses:

·        The objectors recognised that the street was diverse architecturally and so there were no specific concerns in respect of the design of the proposal, but the character of the Conservation Area lay in the overall streetscape, the large gardens and sense of open space and having two houses on this site would have a negative impact on this.

·        There was a strong objection to the principle of having two houses on the site.

·        The Committee asked for information on the criteria on which the area had been designated a Conservation Area in the first place; officers advised that the designation was in 1967 and that there was no existing character appraisal other than that summarised as ‘large houses on large plots’. It was noted that work was currently underway on a character appraisal for the Highgate Conservation Area.

·        Marc Dorfman, Assistant Director, Planning, Regeneration and Economy, advised that the key policies relating to this application were UD3 and UD4 on the impact on amenity and quality of design, and that these would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 215