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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
RESOLVED That delegated power be granted to the Interim Head of Planning to REFUSE the application following the end of the consultation period for Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and for the reasons outlined in the report.
RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service. [Councillor John Cole left the meeting at this juncture]
RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service.
The Chair opened the meeting by noting the sad news of the recent death of their colleague, Councillor Reg Owens. The Chair paid tribute to Councillor Owens recalling they were among the newly-elected intake of the County Council in 2012 and Councillor Brian Hall recollected that he had served as a Member of the Planning Committee more than once. The Chair expressed his personal sadness and extended the Committee’s condolences to the family and friends of Councillor Owens for their loss. The Chair then made the following announcements: · Agenda Item 6 – Planning Application No.23/0701/PA – West Farm, Cosheston, Pembroke Dock – Construction and operation of a solar farm together with all associated works – had been withdrawn from the Agenda prior to the meeting. This was due to the submission of an amended Landscape and Environmental Management Plan and mitigation measures, following the publication of the Committee report, which sought to address the reasons underlying the Officer’s recommendation for planning permission refusal. · During the Committee meeting held on 14 February 2023, delegated authority was granted to the Interim Head of Planning to approve Planning Application No.22/0837/PA – South Cockett, Gilton Lane, Broadway, Haverfordwest –following completion of a Section 106 legal agreement. The decision notice granting permission was issued on 18 January 2024. · Notice of a legal challenge was received on 8February 2024 by Stepaside and Pleasant Valley Residents’ Group (SPVRG) Ltdin respect of Planning Permission Reference 20/0462/PA – Installation of bases for the siting of holiday lodges (which fall under the definition of a caravan), spa facility, holiday apartments, café and cycle hire, an equestrian stables, manège and associated office, main park office, car and cycle parking, residential garages, landscaping, access, retaining walls, foul and surface water drainage, related infrastructure and engineering works) – at Heritage Park, Stepaside. The application was approved at an Extraordinary Meeting of Full Council on 10 November 2023 and planning consent was issued on 4January 2024. · That an oral update would be provided for Agenda Item No. 7 – Planning Application No.23/0723/PA – Land north of Summerton Farm, Sageston, Tenby - The removal of the existing wind turbine and the erection of a single replacement wind turbine (up to a maximum of 90m to blade tip height) and revised hardstanding arrangements.
There were no declarations made at this point in the meeting.
Moved by Councillor Jacob Williams; Seconded by Councillor Brian Hall. The vote, undertaken by way of a show of hands, was carried. RESOLVED That the Minutes of the Meeting held on 9 January 2024 be approved as a correct record, in both English and Welsh.
The Committee noted that this item had been WITHDRAWN from the Agenda for the reasons stated in the oral update.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That delegated power be granted to the Interim Head of Planning to REFUSE the application following the end of the consultation period for Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and for the reasons outlined in the report.
[During consideration of this item, Councillor Tony Wilcox declared a personal interest by virtue of being a Member of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority.] This application was presented for Committee consideration as the application involved a wind turbine of over 30m (Appendix 1 to Section 14 of the Council’s Constitution). The Senior Planning Officer provided an oral update stating that since publication of the Committee report, CADW had responded with no objection to the application, however, the Council’s Ecologist had recommended that any approval would be subject to conditions requiring ecological enhancement measures and species surveys prior to commencement of the development. The Senior Planning Officer then clarified further the recommendation that delegated power be given to the Interim Head of Planning Service to refuse the application following the end of the consultation period for Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority. The Committee proceeded to discuss the application and the key points were noted as follows: • Councillor Mark Carter raised the issue of missing details from the address of the proposed development in the information provided to Members and indicated he may have visited the location had a village name or postcode been supplied. The Chair agreed with Councillor Carter and informed the meeting that the application form had not been fully completed. • Councillor Tony Wilcox requested further information on the generating capacity of the existing wind turbine, pointing out that its replacement had a rating capacity of 330kW (kilowatts) and had increased in height by a third. The Senior Planning Officer advised that the Applicant had confirmed there would be no changes to the power output, however, the new turbine would enable more efficient energy production due to increased wind speeds at higher elevations, increased reliability of new technology and improved wind energy conversion efficiency. • Councillor John Davies, making reference to the overhead lines transmitting electricity from Pembroke Power Station in the satellite image within the presentation, asked whether there may be any other policy reasons why the proposal might be refused and resubmitted with a Cumulative Effects Assessment. He anticipated an increase in the number of applications of this type in future, with advancements in technology and current wind turbines expected to reach the end of their working lives in about 20 years, and was interested to hear whether this would necessitate a policy adjustment. • In response, the Interim Head of Planning Service explained the cumulative impact was not just the reason for refusal but impact on visual amenity being the primary grounds for the recommendation, with the introduction of a large-scale wind turbine in the rural landscape. A supplementary reason was the lack of information that was provided in relation to that cumulative impact as well, she added. With regard to planning policy, the Interim Head of Planning Service stated Future Wales and Planning Policy Wales guidance was taken into consideration in the determination of this application, and informed the balancing exercise between the Local Development Plan (LDP) policy and national planning policy in coming to a view and recommendation. The next LDP would take into account any update to Future Wales and Planning Policy Wales documents, she continued. • Following a question from Councillor John Cole, the Chief Planning Officer replied that the presence of wind turbines on agricultural land were generally used to offset electricity consumption on the farm, however, as the proposed site was in open agricultural land, his assessment would be that this turbine would feed into the National Grid. • Councillor Rhys Jordan made the point that the location of the planned development bordered his Ward of St Florence and St Mary Out Liberty and understood St Florence Community Council was not consulted on the proposal, to which the Chair established the application site fell within the boundary of Carew Community Council. • Referring to the recommendation in paragraph 1.1 of the report, Councillor Michael Williams observed that the proposal by reason of its height and scale would not only have a detrimental impact on the visual amenity of the locality, but would extend to a wider area almost as far as the coast. In considering the application ‘completely unacceptable’, he expressed his strong support for the officer’s recommendation of refusal. The Chief Planning Officer then discussed some of the other concerns officers had, which included the installation of a large wind turbine close to the highway and the pre-planning application enquiry that highlighted the need for a Cumulative Effects Assessment over a large zone. Despite that, the information submitted covered a much narrower area, he added. • Councillor Alistair Cameron made reference to a question raised by Councillor Iwan Ward to defer the matter in order to obtain more detail from the Applicant, to which the Interim Head of Planning Service advised Members to make a decision based on the application that was presented to them. Councillor Brian Hall Moved the recommendation for refusal; Seconded by Councillor Mark Carter. The vote, undertaken by way of a roll-call, was carried. The votes were recorded as follows: For the Motion: Councillors Alistair Cameron, Aaron Carey, Mark Carter, John Cole, John Davies, Tim Evans, Nicola Gwynn, Brian Hall, Rhys Jordan, Anji Tinley, Iwan Ward, Tony Wilcox, Jacob Williams and Michael Williams [14] There were no votes against or abstentions. RESOLVED That delegated power be granted to the Interim Head of Planning to REFUSE the application following the end of the consultation period for Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and for the reasons outlined in the report.
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service. [Councillor John Cole left the meeting at this juncture]
This application was presented for Committee consideration as it involved a full planning application for agricultural buildings in excess of 1,000 sq.m in area on a site in excess of 1.0Ha (Appendix 1 to Section 14 of the Council’s Constitution). The Committee was advised that due notification had been received from an interested party who wished to exercise his right to address the Committee: · Agent – Mr Wyn Harries Following Mr Harries’ address, Councillor Rhys Jordan sought clarification on the proposed type of milking parlour, to which the Agent confirmed that a rotary parlour would be installed as opposed to a robotic system, and milking equipment would be attached manually to each cow. Councillor John Cole requested more information on the use of solar power, to which Mr Harries elaborated that a rooftop photovoltaic (PV) system would be installed to generate electricity that, in turn, would be fed into a battery to assist with the running of the parlour and milk cooling. As the efficiency levels of solar panels were constantly changing, the Agent stated he had not calculated such a figure though the battery would be rated to deliver several hundred kilowatts (kW). Mr Harries went onto explain the rotary milking parlour would offer the Applicant a number of advantages including a reduction in milking time that would shorten the cow’s standing time and lower stress on the animal. The Committee proceeded to discuss the application and the key points were noted as follows: · Councillors Mark Carter, Tony Wilcox and John Davies welcomed the investment by a local farming family and expressed their support for the application. Councillor Brian Hall Moved the recommendation for approval; Seconded by Councillor Mark Carter. The vote, undertaken by way of a roll-call, was carried. The votes were recorded as follows: For the Motion: Councillors Alistair Cameron, Aaron Carey, Mark Carter, John Cole, John Davies, Tim Evans, Nicola Gwynn, Brian Hall, Rhys Jordan, Anji Tinley, Iwan Ward, Tony Wilcox, Jacob Williams and Michael Williams [14] There were no votes against or abstentions. RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service. [Councillor John Cole left the meeting at this juncture]
Decision as recorded
RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service.
This application was presented for Committee consideration as it involved a full planning application for an agricultural building over 1,000 sq.m floorspace (Appendix 1 to Section 14 of the Council’s Constitution). The Principal Planning Officer presented the proposal on behalf of the Case Officer. Following the presentation, Councillor John Davies, the Member representing Cilgerran, confirmed the Community Councils of St Dogmaels and Cilgerran had been consulted on this application, as land on either side of the farm lane was located in each of the Wards, and reported no adverse comments. Councillor Davies indicated his support for the planned development, stating it demonstrated a similar instance to the previous application of a farm wishing to modernise its operations, become more efficient and deal with the challenges faced by dairy farms. He Moved the recommendation for approval; Seconded by Councillor Brian Hall. The vote, undertaken by way of a roll-call, was carried. The votes were recorded as follows: For the Motion: Councillors Alistair Cameron, Aaron Carey, Mark Carter, John Davies, Tim Evans, Nicola Gwynn, Brian Hall, Rhys Jordan, Anji Tinley, Iwan Ward, Tony Wilcox, Jacob Williams and Michael Williams [13] There were no votes against or abstentions. RESOLVED That the application be APPROVED, subject to the conditions outlined in Section 1.1 of the report of the Interim Head of Planning Service.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
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