Agenda and draft minutes

To receive and note apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received and noted for Cllr Whitcroft.

At this point in the meeting, Members and co-opted members are asked to declare any disclosable pecuniary interest, or other registerable interest, they might have in respect of business on this agenda, if they have not already done so in advance on the Register of Interests. The disclosure must include the nature of the interest.

An interest must also be disclosed in the meeting when it becomes apparent to the member during the meeting.

[Please see attached sheet for further guidance for Members].

Members were asked to declare at this point in the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest or other registerable interest they might have in respect of business on the agenda, if they had not already done so in advance on the Register of Interests. Cllr Watson noted that he was a Trustee of York Archaeology. There were no further declarations of interest.

To approve and sign the minutes of the Planning Committee A meetings held on 7 November 2024 and 5 December 2024.

Resolved:  That the minutes of the meetings held on 7 November and 5 December approved as a correct record subject to the following amendments:

·        Under item Land to South and East of the Cemetery, New Lane, Huntington, York [23/01016/OUTM] the first bullet point in Cllr Cullwick answers to questions in public speaking to change to ‘the application site was in the zone of influence in Strensall Common.’

·        First sentence of final paragraph before the resolution on Land Lying to the North West of Murton Way, York [23/02030/FULM]to change to ‘Following debate, Cllr Ayre proposed the officer recommendation to refuse the application.’

·        Final sentence of final paragraph before the resolution on Land Lying to the North West of Murton Way, York [23/02030/FULM]to change to ‘Following a vote with six voting in favour, two against and two abstentions, it was:’

·        Second bullet point of Steven Gough’s answer to answers to questions in public speaking to change to ‘The author of the report was not a qualified fire safety engineer and was an expert in safety.

At this point in the meeting members of the public who have registered to speak can do so. Members of the public may speak on agenda items or on matters within the remit of the committee.

Please note that our registration deadlines are set as 2 working days before the meeting, in order to facilitate the management of public participation at our meetings.  The deadline for registering at this meeting is 5:00pm on Tuesday, 14 January 2025. 

To register to speak please visit www.york.gov.uk/AttendCouncilMeetings to fill in an online registration form.  If you have any questions about the registration form or the meeting, please contact Democratic Services.  Contact details can be found at the foot of this agenda.

Webcasting of Public Meetings

Please note that, subject to available resources, this meeting will be webcast including any registered public speakers who have given their permission. The meeting can be viewed live and on demand at www.york.gov.uk/webcasts.

During coronavirus, we made some changes to how we ran council meetings, including facilitating remote participation by public speakers. See our updates (www.york.gov.uk/COVIDDemocracy) for more information on meetings and decisions.

It was reported that there had been one registration to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme on general matters within the remit of the Planning Committee A.

Flick Williams spoke under the general remit of the Committee. She noted that AI stated the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) applied to the Planning and Licensing functions and could not be delegated. She explained that the committee had correctly imposed three conditions of access before occupancy on the York Central development. She noted that on 23 December 2024 a planning officer made a delegated decision to allow occupancy of the government hub before the conditions were met. She quoted from the decision notice and asked what guarantees there would be that this would not be followed by a succession of applications all of whom wanted occupancy before access. She added that access delayed was access denied and that there must be no more delay.

This item invites Members to determine the following planning applications:

Members considered a schedule of reports of the Head of Planning and Development, relating to the following planning applications, outlining the proposals and relevant policy considerations and setting out the views of consultees and officers.

Erection of an apartment block to comprise residential units (Use Class C3) together with flexible commercial uses (Use Class E and F2), landscaping and associated works (Block H) [Guildhall Ward]

Members considered a major full application for the erection of an apartment block to comprise residential units (Use Class C3) together with flexible commercial uses (Use Class E and F2), landscaping and associated works (Block H) at Hungate Development Site, Hungate, York. The Chair advised that it was a major full application as the reserved matters had expired. He added that paragraphs 5.52 and 5.53 of the published report set out hat the pedestrianisation of Hungate was not part of the application.

The Development Manager outlined the plans and gave a presentation on the application. He noted that it was a build to rent scheme and he explained how this was defined in the NPPF. He noted that the reason for a full application was because the full application had run out. He noted the conditions from the outline planning permission were included in the conditions in the application before Members.

The Principal Planning Officer gave an update on the application. He noted that there had been further representation from the applicant an extended time period of five years and it was felt that that the standard 3 year time limit was appropriate. He added that there had been further representation from Hungate residents regarding parking, the delivery of St John’s Square and building heights. He detailed the corrections and clarifications to the report, additional conditions and items for the S106 heads of terms.

Public Speakers

Mark Russell spoke in objection to the application. He explained how the development prevented access to the Bellerby Court multi storey car park due to cars queuing to get into the car park. He requested that access to the multi storey car park should be via Hungate. He believe that St Jon’s Square should be completed at the same time as block H.

Ian Kingham spoke in objection to the application. He noted that he was a committee member of Leetham House Community Group. He explained that renters did not make a contribution to the community. He noted that Dundas Street would become single lane and he did not believe that it would be able to cope with retail units. He was concerned that St John’s Square would attract anti social behaviour and he expressed concern regarding noise during the building works. He asked for the pelican crossing to be reinstated.

Cllr Dave Merrett, Guildhall Ward Cllr, spoke in objection to the application. He had been contacted by residents about their concerns regarding St John’s Square being delayed. He noted residents’ concerns regarding access to the car park and that they would like to see the Hungate route being retained. He expressed concern regarding the S106 funding. He noted that it was difficult for residents to cross opposite the Hiscox building and noted that residents would also like additional electric vehicle (EV) charging.

Colin Murphy, the applicant, spoke in support of the application. He explained that the scheme would provide professionally managed rental accommodation, including affordable rents. Regarding the St John’s  ...  view the full minutes text for item 147.