Agenda item - BH2023/01955 - Former Peter Pan's Playground Site, Madeira Drive, Brighton - Full Planning

1.         The Planning Manager introduced the application to the committee.

Speakers

2.         Roy Pennington addressed the committee as a resident and stated that they had spoken to the applicant 3 weeks ago regarding the application and they said would do something about the pedestrian access across the road. The resident also stated that they had written to the Planning committee regarding access issues and requested a site visit. If the application was approved there would be a significant increase in people attending the site. The gate giving access to the site is not mentioned in the report and should be taken into account. The speaker requested that a condition be added to improve pedestrian access to the site, and they considered that rubber matting would improve the accessibility from the pedestrian gate to the vehicle gate.

3.         David Samuel addressed the committee as an interested party and stated they represented the Life Saving Club with 256 members offering lifesaving training to adults and children at the site. All members are volunteers who attend events and schools. The club became homeless in 2021 and were looking for a new home. Sea Lanes agreed to take the club and offered the storage units for the club’s use. It was not known that planning permission was required as the lockers were like-for-like the existing units.

Answers to Committee Member Questions

4.         Councillor Theobald was informed by the case officer that the artwork on the north elevation of the lockers was to remain, and the Heritage team had not objected. The access referred to was not part of the planning application as it lay outside of the site. The permissions for the use of the land are temporary ending on 1 April 2032.

5.         Councillor Robinson was informed that Planning permission and permission from the landowner were both required. The council are the landowner. It was noted that payments for the use of the land were not a material planning consideration. It was also noted that the regeneration of the listed Madeira Drive arches was ongoing, and it was not known if the development would impact on grant applications for funding the arches. There were no objections from the Heritage team.

6.         Councillor Pickett was informed by the case officer that the lockers were on site before and had been removed in 2018, then replaced. It was noted that the Volks railway was outside the red line site boundary and did not form part of the application.

7.         Councillor Hamilton was informed by the case officer that the extensions to the temporary permission could be submitted, however, if not then all structures needed to be removed at the end of the temporary period.

8.         Councillor Nann was informed by the case officer that a plan to remove the structures was not required by the Planning team.

9.         Councillor Loughran was informed by the case officer that 10 years temporary permission aligned with the temporary permissions already granted on the north side of the Volks railway. The Planning Manager noted that temporary permissions can vary in duration, and it was acceptable to have a temporary permission for 10 years. David Samuel confirmed that they would be the user and the club had previously been housed at Brighton Sailing Club for 15 years, and that Sea Lanes made the only offer of a new home. He also confirmed that the club was a lifesaving club who taught lifeguards and a third of council lifeguards were trained by the club, all of whom were volunteers.

Debate

10.      Councillor Theobald considered the club to be useful and asked that the club maintain the structures and look at disabled access to the site. The councillor supported the application.

11.      Councillor Cattell noted there were a number of structures along the sea front, and these cannot be seen from the arches. The councillor considered the parking in the area would be more impactful. The lockers were considered to reflect the existing structures and were not offensive. It was noted that this is one of the only sea pools in the country. The councillor supported the application.

12.      Councillor Allen considered the lockers would be good for leisure users and the artwork was good for keeping graffiti off. The councillor supported the application.

13.      Councillor Robinson considered the use to be good, however, the lockers could be seen from the Madeira Drive terrace.

14.      Councillor Loughran considered the lockers would have an impact on the grade II* listed assets and cause harm which is less than substantial. The councillor considered the 10-year temporary permission too long. The applicant had not supplied any material alternatives. The councillor did not support the application.

15.      Councillor Nann considered the application to be reasonable, however, the 10-year temporary permission seemed too long.

Vote

16.      A vote was taken, and by 5 to 4 the committee agreed to grant planning permission.

17.      RESOLVED: That the Committee has taken into consideration and agrees with the reasons for the recommendation set out in the report and resolves to GRANT planning permission subject to the Conditions and Informatives in the report.