Agenda item

Proposal: Installation of property gates at the end of Water Street and along the access drive to Barrington Court.

The Principal Planner (Development Management) presented the application,and explained in detail the location of proposed gates. He highlighted the key considerations and also the objections raised by Barrington Parish Council. It was noted that the SSDC Conservation Officer had no objection to the proposal on heritage grounds.

A representative for Barrington Parish Council addressed members in objection to the proposal, some of his points included:

·        Concerns about pedestrian and mobility scooter access if gates placed at end of Water Street.

·        Acknowledge Water Street been a no through road for over 20 years but the road is still used as a run through for many local vehicles.

·        If Water Street blocked off how will bin lorries and other large delivery vehicles manoeuvre back up along the street as there isn’t a turning area? It is a narrow lane and may be an accident if lorries have to reverse all the way back along the street,

The Operations Manager for the National Trust (NT) at Barrington Court then addressed members in support of the application, some of his points included:

·        The property attracted approximately 125,000 visitors a year.

·        The pathway from the main car park crossed the junction at the end of Water Street. Over the years some erratic driving had been seen with people using Water Street as a short cut, and unfortunately there had been some near misses with pedestrians. The proposed gates were to enable pedestrian safety for visitors.

·        The driveway is effectively private land.

·        The end of Water Street isn’t a public Right of Way. They had worked with the parish council and local residents, and the NT were prepared to enable access for pedestrians and wheelchairs to enable safe access to the footpaths.

·        The estate fences and gates were also needed in order to secure the property.

Ward member, Councillor Mike Stanton, thanked the National Trust for agreeing to potentially provide pedestrian access at the end of Water Street as that was important to the village. He explained his reason for asking for the application to be referred to Committee was because of the problem for turning vehicles, especially lorries. If gates were to be installed at the end of Water Street there was nowhere for vehicles to turn. A solution would be to provide a turning area, and there was possibly land available which was owned by the National Trust, and he made reference to the report and the pre-application stage. He expressed his disappointment that the National Trust weren’t doing more to work with the community to provide a solution for turning vehicles, He queried if an alternative solution might be to relocate the gates to a different position that may also facilitate the turning of vehicles. He did not support the application.

At the invitation of the Chairman, the representative for the National Trust, responded to some of the points of detail raised about the location of an existing gate and the suggestions for a turning head on Water Street. He noted the erection of boundary features was the right of the landowner and it should not be conditioned for the NT to provide or fund a turning area to serve a public highway.

The District Solicitor & Monitoring Officer advised members that they should focus on planning reasons, and if determining the application as detailed in the agenda, it would need to be on planning grounds. She also reminded members that they could defer the application if they wished which might give the applicants an opportunity to reflect on their application having heard the comments made during discussion.

During discussion several comments and suggestions were raised by members, some of which included:

·        The proposed gates at the end of Water Street will effectively create a cul-de-sac. Without a turning point they will have no option but to reverse back along the street and residents will be inconvenienced not only by the vehicles but also the bleepers that go with them.

·        Could more be done to improve signage along Water Street.

·        Struggling a little with the approach and attitude of the National Trust.

·        Slightly relocating the gate at Water Street may provide a solution

·        The bonds that the National Trust has forged with local communities are vital.

At the end of debate, it was proposed and seconded to defer the application for a site visit. It was also agreed that the Parish Council be invited to attend the site visit and a Highways representative, or County member for Highways. On being put to the vote, the proposal to defer for a site visit was carried unanimously.

(Voting: Unanimous)

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