Item 05 Application No. IP/18/00239/FPI3

1 Item 05 Application No. IP/18/00239/FPI3 Ward: ALEXANDRA Proposal: Continued use of land as short-stay public car park for a further 2 years. Address: Car Park,15 - 21 Foundation Street, Applicant: Ipswich Borough Council Agent: Miss Janine Last Recommendation Grant planning permission subject to the following conditions (briefly):- 1. Use shall cease on or before 25 April 2020. 2. Parking to be restricted to short-stay parking only (no more than 5 hours). 3. Approved disabled parking space, lighting, and boundary treatments to be retained. The Application is brought before Planning and Development Committee because it is made on behalf of Ipswich Borough Council on a site within its ownership. 1. Proposal The site comprises a 21 space public pay and display car park with access from Smart Street granted a temporary two year permission in 2016 (refer IP/16/00007/VCI3). The Application seeks to continue the use for a further two-year period.

2 The Application site is located within the town centre, IP-One Area and within the Central Parking Core. The Central Conservation Area is located to the north and west. The site also affects a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is within an Area of Archaeological Importance. 2. Background The Application site ( ha) is the northern part of the wider allocated site referred to as IP011b and is predominantly allocated for housing (80%) and offices (20%) within the Site Allocations and Policies DPD (2017). The recent planning history indicates that Ipswich Borough Council was granted temporary (two- years) planning permission in 2014 for a change of use from a private car park to a public pay and display car park (IP/14/00099/FP13). This permission was extended in 2016 for a further period of two years (refer IP/16/00007/VCI3) which expired on 1st April 2018. 3. Consultations SCC Highways Condition recommended requiring the widening of the vehicular access from the current to prior to first use under the new permission.

3 Representations None received. 4. Policy National Planning Policy - National Planning Policy Framework (2012) - National Planning Practice Guidance (2014) Local Planning Policy Core Strategy and Policies DPD (2017) Policy DM18 (Car & Cycle Parking). Site Allocations and Policies DPD Review (2017) Policies SP1 (The protection of allocated sites), and SP17 (Town Centre Car Parking). Other Planning Guidance - Suffolk Guidance for Parking Technical Guidance (2015) - Cycling Strategy SPD (2016) 5. Assessment Principle of extending the temporary use of the car park for a further period Across the Borough a number of temporary car parks have been granted consent over recent years, the majority on development sites that have stalled. Temporary car parks make good use of such sites that would otherwise remain vacant. The Council approaches town centre car parking with the twin aims of supporting the economy of the town centre and limiting congestion, through supporting the Travel Ipswich measures and encouraging the use of sustainable modes of transport (Policy SP17).

4 Policies DM18 further encourages the use of sustainable means of transport, particularly for journeys to work and to reduce town centre traffic congestion by avoiding increasing the stock of long stay car parking within the Central Parking Core. The restriction on longer stay car parking usually takes the form of a condition requiring financial disincentives for parking for longer than 5 hours and it is important that the Borough is consistent in this approach. Such a condition is recommended and on this basis the car park would be acceptable having regard to policy DM18. Policy SP17 also states that applications for additional temporary car parks will not be approved and that applications to renew existing temporary short stay car parks will not be permitted when permanent provision has been delivered. Currently Crown Car Park is being built and will deliver 546 car parking spaces later this year. It is therefore considered that continued use for car parking would be appropriate.

5 However, under some circumstances where there is evidence that redevelopment is likely to come forward this has been restricted to a single year based upon the above consideration and having regard to policy SP17. Impact on long term regeneration of the site There is a clear need to comprehensively redevelop this allocated site and there is often a concern that continued use for car parking and other meanwhile uses would serve to discourage such redevelopment. Furthermore there is a need for additional housing over the plan period, hence the sites allocation. However, there are no extant permissions or current applications to redevelop the Application site itself, nor are any such applications likely to be forthcoming in the short term. It is likely that such an Application would take at least a year to compile, with further time required to gain planning permission and to clear relevant planning conditions and other non-planning matters associated with a major redevelopment scheme.

6 Furthermore, the First Bus depot, which is within the allocated site boundary is still occupied and a new site for this would be required before any development takes place; it may remain occupied for some time therefore. These factors mean that it could be some time before the allocated site can be brought forward for comprehensive development although such aims remain realistic over the course of the plan period. Therefore, whilst temporary permissions are normally restricted to a single year based upon policy SP17, in this case an extended permission for a period of two years would be more appropriate, taking into account the above considerations and having regard to policy SP1 Whilst comprehensive development is the only long-term solution for the site, the continued use as a car park in the short term will avoid a vacant site prone to vandalism and enable further time for a comprehensive redevelopment to be progressed.

7 Standard of development The car park has been surfaced to an acceptable standard. Disabled and cycle parking has already been provided and this would be appropriate having regard to policy DM18 and the Suffolk Guidance for Parking (2015). Suffolk County Council as Highways Authority does not wish to restrict the grant of permission providing that all previously recommended highway conditions remain applicable. In addition the highway authority has suggested a planning condition requiring that the vehicular access is widened in accordance with Suffolk County Council drawing no. DM11 with a minimum width of The Authority maintains that the increased access width will assist vehicles to enter and exit the site at the same time reducing congestion within the public highway. However, given that the car park has only twenty-one spaces it is considered that the likelihood of vehicles entering and leaving the site at the same time is low.

8 Added to this, Smart Street is a cul-de-sac, which leads nowhere in particular, and is lightly trafficked meaning that interruption to the flow of traffic would also be unlikely. It is therefore considered that the suggested condition cannot be justified. Given that the proposal is for a temporary time period, it would not be reasonable to require the provision of Electric Vehicle charging points with this scheme in this instance. Furthermore, given that the site also affects a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is within an Area of Archaeological Importance, any additional groundworks may be detrimental to below ground archaeology. 6. Planning Balance The site is allocated along with adjacent sites (First Bus depot) for comprehensive employment and residential development. It is important that acknowledgement be made that this redevelopment is somewhat reliant on the allocation, and the larger parcel of land being brought forward together, unless it can be demonstrated with certainty that the piecemeal development of the sites can still achieve the redevelopment aims of the Council.

9 It is considered that in this case the use of this part of the wider allocation for a temporary car park, for a further two year period would not stifle the regeneration of the area, nor would it prejudice the development of the wider site should such applications for planning permission be pursued. Officers consider that a two year temporary permission would be acceptable having regard to policies DM18, SP1 and SP17.