Agenda item

Report of the Director of Streetscene and Regulatory Services

The Cabinet Member considered a report of the Director of Streetscene and Regulatory Services which sought approval to undertake a public consultation on the draft Earlsdon Conservation Area proposal.

The intention to consider the Earlsdon district of the city for conservation area status was included in the Coventry City Local Plan at Policy HE1 and draft documentation had now been produced to progress this and was ready for public consultation.

In order to ensure that specific matters would be considered in the context of the Appraisal and Management Plan, limited changes to Permitted Development rights were being proposed, via an Article 4 Direction, which would result in planning applications being submitted in these circumstances.

Community workshops were held in 2016 to seek the views of local people in identifying the special characteristics of the area, and to highlight issues which were seen to require control in order that the special character of the area was retained for future generations. In addition, site walks were also undertaken with the Ward Councillors.

Following this, a Conservation Area Appraisal and a Management Plan were produced based on the findings to develop a sound evidence base on which future development proposals may be assessed to ensure responsiveness to the local context. These draft documents were attached to the report as Appendix 1 and 2 respectively and were ready for public consultation.

Alongside the draft Appraisal and the draft Management Plan, a draft Article 4 was included at Appendix 3 to the report.  The implementation of this Direction would result in a proposed removal of elements of Permitted Development Rights to ensure applications are made to the planning authority for works which may affect the special character of the conservation area. These applications would then be determined in accordance with national and local policy, including the Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan.

As with the previous report, it should be noted that as part of the public consultation of an Article 4 Direction, it is appropriate to establish the implementation date of the said Direction. It was proposed that the Article 4 Direction come into force on 1 July 2022, with the caveat that should the public consultation vary the nature of the Conservation Area or Article 4, that this date may be moved to a later date with Cabinet approval but may not be made sooner.

In seeking to progress the Earlsdon Conservation Area designation as per the commitment within the Local Plan, approval was sought to progress to public consultation prior to the anticipated adoption. Consultation was proposed for six weeks, in line with Council’s Statement of Community involvement.

Councillors B Gittins and A Tucker, Earlsdon Ward councillors who attended the meeting for the consideration of this item, thanked and praised officers on the community engagement with the residents and the walk abouts in the area.

They raised the following points:

·  The need to consider the broad ranging properties within the area, from exclusive properties, to first time buyer properties purchased with a view to refurbishment

·  Regeneration and pedestrianisation of High Street would need to be sympathetically undertaken

·  The need for the different service areas of the Council working in the area to liaise with each other to ensure everyone was working to the same end goal

·  Consideration would need to be given to the weaving and watch making quarter which was just over the proposed conservation area border.

·  Consideration needed to be given to the impact of empty shops and their refurbishment

·  Consideration of traffic management/cycle lanes/light rail and how these would impact the built environment in the area

Other members present enquired about the size of a conservation area as there were individual properties in areas that have a more fluid community and residents who were less likely to come forward and engage in such proposals; unlike Earlsdon which has a more settled community.  It was explained that in these circumstances, a local listing may be more appropriate.

The Cabinet Member thanked everyone for their useful comments and reiterated the need to encourage residents to engage with the consultation. He added that existing conservation areas would be revisited and areas where communities were less likely to engage would be included for consistency. The consultation would be available on the Council’s website and displayed in libraries etc. 

A report on the outcome of the consultation seeking approval to the designation of the area would be submitted to Cabinet in due course.

RESOLVED that, the Cabinet Member having considered the report and the discussions at the meeting, approves a public consultation for six weeks during March and April 2022, on the Earlsdon Conservation Area proposal.