Agenda item

At this juncture, Councillor Russell moved to public seating.

The Principal Planning Officer submitted a report and elaborated thereon. Members’ attention was drawn to the addendum which detailed the thrust of the guidance in the recently published NPPF which remains unchanged and relevant to the proposal. [RB1] In addition, it was highlighted that the addendum includes further representations from residents and from Kingsley Park Allotment Association. It was also noted that the application was originally submitted in December 2017, however the determination of the application had been delayed due to extensive discussions between the applicant’s highway consultant, and NCC Highways, with NCC Highways subsequently raising no objections to the application.

Councillor Russell, in her capacity as the Ward Councillor, spoke against the application and voiced her concern with the proposed opening hours, the potential increase in litter, light pollution, traffic and obesity. She stated that there was no mention in the Local Plan for fast food outlets and asked that the Committee take residents’ objections into consideration.

Having addressed the Committee, Councillor Russell left the room for the remainder of the discussion.

Councillor Hallam, on behalf of his constituents and as the Cabinet Member for Environment, spoke against the application and stated that there were alternate locations better suited for a McDonalds. He further stated that the proposal was not in the spirit of the original agreement to use the land and that the highway would not be able to cope with the increase in traffic.

In response to a question, Councillor Hallam stated that there were at least 3 schools within walking distance of the site.

Tony Howell, a local resident, spoke against the application and voiced concern around potential highway issues, littering, vermin and obesity. He also stated that the proposed opening hours would exacerbate existing antisocial behaviour in the car park late at night and suggested that there were more suitable locations for such a development.

Perry Akhtar, local franchisee, spoke in favour of the application and stated that the development would have a positive impact on the neighbourhood, creating around 100 new jobs. He explained that waste management was taken seriously; 3 litter picks would take place daily and the site would have a dedicated car park attendant. He further stated that a full transport assessment had been undertaken as part of the application.

In response to questions, it was explained that a 2 storey building was more land-efficient, having a smaller footprint and thus would use less of the existing car park. It was further explained that it was easier from an operational viewpoint to stay open 24 hours a day. Whilst Mr Akhtar acknowledged that people could not be stopped from littering, staff would litter-pick in an area 200m from the business.

When asked about the business’s viability if the opening times were restricted, the Committee heard that the applicant would be willing to accept opening hours of 6am-12midnight.

Catherine Chapman, highway consultant on behalf of the applicant, advised that analysis of Kettering Road was undertaken at the behest of councillors and residents. She further advised that the expected increase in traffic over the next 20 years had been factored in to all assessments.

The Principal Planning Officer noted that the Environmental Health Officer had not requested any variation of the opening hours and that due to the differing nature of the proposed development and nearby supermarket, comparisons could not easily be drawn.

Responding to a question regarding noise levels, the Head of Planning explained that the houses to the rear of the supermarket were located on a smaller road and had a lower threshold for noise; Kettering Road, having more background noise, had a higher threshold.

Members discussed the report.

RESOLVED:

That the application be APPROVED subject to the conditions and reasons as set out in the report, with additional Condition 14 to restrict opening hours from 06:00 to 00:00 midnight only.