planning Archives - Page 6 of 24

Farm buildings on Swinton Estate could be converted into housing‘We are not here as experts’: Residents begin fight at Knox Lane planning inquiryLight pollution policy to protect Nidderdale dark skies

North Yorkshire Council is set to adopt a policy designed to prevent light pollution in Nidderdale.

Astronomers commissioned by Nidderdale AONB — which has since been renamed Nidderdale National Landscape — in spring 2022 found the night skies in the north west of the area, including Upper Nidderdale and moorland near Masham, are some of the least affected by light pollution in England.

With this in mind, the council drew up a Nidderdale AONB-specific supplementary planning document for its Harrogate District Local Plan 2014-35, which outlines where development can occur.

The policy was first devised by the former Harrogate Borough Council in February 2023. Senior councillors on North Yorkshire Council are now expected to adopt the plan.

The document, once adopted, will be used as a “material consideration” by councillors when deciding on planning applications in the area.

Among its key objectives include introducing a “zoning scheme” to protect the darker skies in Nidderdale.

It also recommends that external lights in the darkest zone, which includes Upper Nidderdale, should only have 500 lumens, which is a measurement of visible light to the human eye.

The document adds that light pollution from farm and commercial buildings is “the most obvious source” of light pollution in the darkest zone of the AONB.

Senior councillors will be asked to adopt the policy document at an executive meeting on May 7.

Harrogate clothes shop closes for refurbishment

A prominent James Street store has closed to undergo refurbishment.

The unit at 20-22 James Street houses two shops, Monsoon, with the James Street entrance and sister shop, Accessorize with the Marketplace store front.

Monsoon & Accessorize is currently closed, but the Stray Ferret understands the store is due to reopen after a refit.

The store is listed as permanently closed on Google, which raised confusion around the shop returning.

The Stray Ferret contacted the company for confirmation but Monsoon Accessorize declined to comment, stating that commenting on shop openings and closures is against company policy.

The women’s fashion retailer currently has notices displayed in both windows, which say “sorry, we’re closed but this isn’t goodbye forever” and “be right back”.

It comes as the company submitted plans to North Yorkshire Council for new signage this year.

London based Adena Services Ltd applied for a ‘halo lit fascia signage to existing retail unit’. The new signage is proposed to be coral, gold and illuminated.

Proposed shop front

The unit is the second shop on James Street to have closed for refit and later appear on Commercial Rightmove in recent weeks.

The Rightmove listing describes the site as:

“Available on a new full repairing and insuring lease for a term of years to be agreed in multiples of 5 with 5 yearly upward only rent reviews.”

The closed sign currently displayed in Monsoon’s window

The company behind Monsoon Accessorize was founded in the 1970s but went into administration in 2020 due to trading issues during the pandemic and closed multiple stores across the country.

The Harrogate store survived the closures after company founder Peter Simon brought Monsoon Accessorize out of administration.

Accessorize storefront Harrogate

Birchfield Farm to get jam, honey and cake production building

Plans to create a new building for producing jam, honey and cakes at Birchfield Farm at Summerbridge have been approved by North Yorkshire Council.

The proposed single storey facility will complement the farm’s existing tea room and ice cream parlour.

Birchfield Farm is a family run working farm between Harrogate and Pateley Bridge with a range of children’s attractions, including sheep, pigs, goats, and donkeys. It also offers lamb feeding, a maze and ‘pick your own’ events including strawberries and a pumpkin festival.

Plans were submitted on behalf of the applicant by Skipton based rural property planning and development specialists David Hill.

Plans submitted to the council said:

“Over the past few years, the applicant has expanded the farming enterprise to meet demand, by increasing stock numbers and erecting new buildings, as well as improving the onsite ice cream parlour and tearoom.

“The proposal will create an area for producing jam, honey and baked goods as part of the existing farm diversification. This will support the existing business as well as helping the rural economy through the sale of the produce made on the farm.

“Jam will be made from the fruit grown on the farm and honey made from the bees kept on the farm.”

The building, which will measure 11.4 metres by 6.3 metres, will be situated in a concrete yard next to a farm building.

Case officer Edward Bainbridge’s planning report said:

“When assessing the development against the relevant policies and guidance highlighted above it is considered that the overall landscape and visual impact of the proposal, including its impact on the AONB is acceptable.”

The Stray Ferret has approached Birchfield Farm for comment.

Knaresborough care home set to expand

A Knaresborough care home has been granted planning permission to expand.

Thistle Hill Care Home will be able to provide more accommodation for younger people with physical disabilities and acquired brain injuries.

Barchester Healthcare, which owns the home on Thistle Hill, applied to North Yorkshire Council to create single storey extensions to the front and rear of the existing building, a roof terrace and four car parking spaces.

The home provides 24-hour nursing and specialist dementia care, and also operates the Farnham Unit, which offers specialist care for younger people with physical disabilities and acquired brain injuries.

According to a design and access statement by Harris Irwin Architects in support of the application, the scheme will provide eight additional en-suite bedrooms for these younger people.

The statement said:

“The 20-bed Farnham Unit is in high demand and always runs at full capacity. Potential permanent and respite admissions are routinely turned away due to lack of available beds.

“The home operates a waiting list for both private and respite admissions due to lack of capacity and has had to cease regular respite return stays due to full occupancy with permanent residents.”

It added:

“There is high demand locally for services that support younger adults with physical disabilities and/or acquired brain injuries. There are currently insufficient numbers of specialist beds that cater for both these needs locally. This insufficient local provision is leading to such cohorts being placed out of area, which is an undesirable outcome for all concerned.”

The home is situated 1.2 miles from Knaresborough town centre on Green Belt land.

Aimée McKenzie, the case officer at the council, said in the decision notice report:

“From a visual prospective the additions will be minimal. The scheme is an extension to an existing site, which is sustainable as it ensures its continued use.

“It is considered based on the need presented for this site specifically and local community benefit of continued specialist support; on balance and the cumulative benefits, there is justification for the expansion of this care home in this location. It is considered the proposal in principle does accord with local and national planning polices.

“On the basis of the above the development proposed is considered on balance to be acceptable in principle and would not create harm in relation to design, amenity, highway safety, impact to the green belt and protected landscape.”

Plans to build 13 homes in Markington withdrawn

Plans to build 13 homes in Markington have been withdrawn.

Leeds Housing developers KCS Development Ltd applied to build 13 two to four-bedroomed houses with gardens and car parking spaces at High Mill Farm on High Street. Five were classed as affordable homes.

The firm previously applied to build 21 houses on the site in 2022 but withdrew that application in February 2023 to consider “concerns raised by consultees and the planning officer.”

The latest plans for 13 houses were submitted in July last year, but documents on North Yorkshire Council’s planning portal reveal they have now been withdrawn.

The planned site on High Mill Farm, Markington.

A design and access statement submitted to Harrogate Borough Council by Ilkley architects Halliday Clark on behalf of the applicant said there was an “identified need” for new housing in Markington, which is situated between Harrogate and Ripon and has a population of just over 600 people.

The statement said:

“The proposal sits centrally in Markington and is in walking distance of all the village amenities such as the primary school, shops and community spaces. Developing in a small village such as Markington will protect the continuation of these vital services, allowing the village to stay sustainable. There is an identified need within Markington to provide affordable family housing to enable young families and people to stay living in the village.”

The statement adds the development would be “concealed and therefore will have no visual impact on Markington’s high street”.

Markington with Wallerthwaite Parish Council objected to the development and said:

“The council also rejects the idea that there is an ‘identifiable need’ for housing in Markington. The number of properties for sale in the village, which aren’t selling, including on Phase 1, point towards the fact that more housing is just not necessary.

“The council has received no support for the application. There have been no comments in favour of Phase 2 from the village. The total opposite is true. Residents have expressed alarm and frustration with the plans and planning process asking ‘at what time does a village move to not being a village anymore’ when what gives a village its essence is slowly eroded.”

The parish council also raised concerns regarding overlooking, overshadowing, and flood risks. The application received 31 objections.

Another 135 homes off Harrogate’s Skipton Road set for approval

Plans to build up to 135 homes off Skipton Road in Harrogate look set to be approved next week.

Harrogate company Rowan Green Developments submitted plans to North Yorkshire Council for a development on 8.8 hectares of agricultural land at Cow Dyke Farm, between the New Park roundabout and the Curious Cow of Harrogate roundabout.

Up to 54 homes termed affordable would be included.

Council case officer Helen Goulden has recommended members of the council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency planning committee approve the application, subject to 33 conditions, when it meets on Tuesday, March 26. The meeting will be broadcast live online by the council here.

Ms Goulden said in her 34-page report:

“The proposed development will make a valuable contribution to meeting housing need, including the delivery of affordable housing.

“The proposal will have an acceptable impact on the character and appearance of the area and no issues are raised at this outline stage in terms of highway matters, trees, ecology, or amenity.”

The land allocated for the scheme.

Her report added, however, that an outstanding objection from the lead local flood authority still required resolving.

The application, described in the report as “a significant and sensitive development”, received 71 objections and no representations of support during the public consultation phase.

The key concerns include the adverse impact on the character of the area, the visual impact, the loss of agricultural land and the loss of trees, hedgerows and wildlife habitat.

The site, which is included for development in the Harrogate District Local Plan 2014-35, has a long planning history.

A bid for 180 homes in 2018 was refused amid concerns for housing density and further plans were then submitted for 145 homes.

The site is located on two fields of agricultural grassland to the north of the A59 Skipton Road (A59) towards the northwestern edge of Harrogate.

A map showing the site north of Skipton Road.

Killinghall Parish Council said in its consultation response it “neither objects nor supports the scheme” but raised various concerns, including problematic site access during construction.

The council suggested the developer should contribute £1.2 million for funding school expansion and new school places at primary and secondary level in mitigation for the impact of the scheme.

It has also called for an additional £369,000 to be spent on enhancing “various off-site open spaces in the locality and Killinghall Village Hall”.

A design and access statement on behalf of the developer said:

“Cow Dyke Farm will be a special place in Harrogate; strongly rooted in its landscape setting, with a unique character, providing the best of town country living.

“The site presents a wonderful opportunity for the provision of new housing within the wider setting of Harrogate in a site which strongly benefits from its strategic connections to the town and surrounding areas.”

Thomas the Baker set to open new store in Boroughbridge

Thomas the Baker plans to open a store on Boroughbridge High Street, where the Cooplands bakery used to be.

Cooplands closed its Boroughbridge store last April following “an in-depth review of the business”, having opened it nearly three years ago in February 2021. The Scarborough-based chain’s closest store is now on Beulah Street, Harrogate.

Beulah Street Cooplands in Harrogate.

Thomas the Baker has submitted a planning application to North Yorkshire Council for a replacement shopfront including new non-illuminated fascia and projecting sign.

People can comment on the application concerning the new store at 33 High Street until this Sunday, January 7. The store would add to the current number of bakeries in the market tow, which include Gilchrist’s and Havenhands.

The family-owned bakery chain headquartered in Helmsley was established in 1981. The company has 30 shops across Yorkshire and the North-East, including: Ripon, Knaresborough, Thirsk, Acomb, Easingwold, Haxby, Kirbymoorside, Malton, Pickering, Scarborough, Selby and four in York.

Harrogate care home owner “absolutely delighted” after Grove House conversion approved

The owner of Harrogate’s Grove House has said he is “absolutely delighted” after planners finally gave the go-ahead to convert the grade two listed building into a luxury care facility.

Graeme Lee, chief executive of Springfield Healthcare, bought Grove House for £3 million in 2019 and then spent five years working on plans to transform it into what he calls “the holy grail of care”.

North Yorkshire Council finally granted approval this month, which means the former home of Harrogate mayor, inventor and philanthropist Samson Fox will be converted into a care home consisting of 24 flats. In addition, a 62-bed care home and eight houses providing supported living for over-65s will be built on adjoining land.

Mr Lee, whose company already owns seven care homes, including Harcourt Gardens in Harrogate and the Chocolate Works in York, said:

“I’m absolutely delighted that after a five-year journey we can now bring to life what I believe is going to be the most innovative and unique intergenerational care scheme.

“When we did Chocolate Works I wondered how we would top that. But this will.

“Grove House will be restored to its former glory. The building, which has lots of leaks, will be given some TLC. The grand hall and billiards room will remain. We will bring it back to life and reforge the spirit of Samson Fox.”

Mr Lee admitted there were doubts about whether the scheme would go ahead because of the length of the planning process. He added the cost had risen from £15 million to £20 million due to inflation and the cost of living increase.

An artist’s impression of part of the new care facility.

An aerial view showing Grove House opposite the fire station on Skipton Road.

Mr Lee, who lives in Harrogate, said he hoped to appoint a contractor — probably Simpsons of York, which undertook Harcourt Gardens and the Chocolate Works — by spring and then begin work in summer. He added the scheme would be built in phases, with a planned opening date of summer 2026.

The six-acre site, which has been unused for years, will host an annual community day and be used widely by pupils at nearby Grove Road Community Primary School.Children will hold lessons on site and build relationships with residents with dementia to make the project a pioneering multi-generational scheme, Me Lee said.

They will also be able to track wildlife such as foxes and badgers on site through hidden cameras and use a new wildlife pond for study.

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