Agenda item

(Voting: 13 in favour, 0 against, 2 abstentions)

The Area Lead Officer, Development Management introduced the report and advised that following correspondence from local residents and his own observations of the area, his report asked if Members wished to embark on an extension to Zone 2 of the Article 4 Direction for Houses in Multiple Occupation in Yeovil to include Mitchelmore Road, Roping Road, Kingston View & parts of Sparrow Road.  He noted that he had consulted with colleagues within the Housing and Environmental Health services who had both voiced their concerns that the order could force HMO landlords to move to other areas when SSDC had a duty to assist eligible homeless people, particularly single people who required HMO accommodation.  They had also noted that it discouraged good, responsible landlords from creating new HMO properties for letting.

In response to questions from Members, the Area Lead Officer, Development Management advised:-

·         A license was required for HMO properties over 3 storeys high because of fire regulations.

·         The financial implications would be similar to previous Article 4 Directions with the consultation and 12 month lead in period mitigating any compensation claims.

·         The Article 4 Directions were largely self-policing as local estate agents were aware of the areas they covered and advised potential purchasers accordingly.

·         The current number of unoccupied HMO rooms within properties was not known and the licensing regime did not capture all HMO properties.

During discussion, some concern was expressed that the officers comments from the Housing and Environmental Health services should be further investigated through a focussed discussion, however, the majority of Members were supportive of extending the existing HMO Zone 2 to include Mitchelmore Road, Roping Road, Kingston View & parts of Sparrow Road.  This was because of car parking issues and the need to ensure balanced communities within the town. 

At the conclusion of the debate, it was noted that the Article 4 Direction would not prevent any further HMO properties within the areas identified but would control them.  It was proposed and seconded to instruct officers to ‘make’ a new Yeovil HMO (Houses in Multiple Occupation) Article 4 Direction covering Mitchelmore Road, Roping Road, Kingston View and to extend the area proposed in the officer’s report to include all properties to the south of Sparrow Road to its junction with Mudford Road.  On being put to the vote, the proposal was carried (voting: 13 in favour, 0 against, 2 abstentions).

(Voting: 13 in favour, 0 against, 2 abstentions)