The Herbert Collins Estates Residents Association Newsletters

If you see Committee members taking photos around the Conservation Area, this is likely to be be for the new document “Character Appraisal and Management Plan” which will replace the “Design Guidance”. Instead of the sketches of features of Collins houses, there will be colour photographs in the new booklet.

The day of the party started dull and damp, but this cleared and the afternoon was very pleasant. Ian Jarvis and Ken Hickling once again used their culinary skills to serve a barbecue to about 100 people.

We thank Sue Mellett for organising the children’s games. Millie Law did a very professional job of starting the races, making sure nobody got an unfair advantage by starting early or in front of the line.

The AGM of the Association will be on Tuesday 27th September in St George’s School hall. After the AGM, it is hoped to have a public meeting on the proposed new Article 4 Direction for the Conservation Area.

The Southampton Federation of Residents’ Associations had a public meeting on 29th June. This was an opportunity to raise all the perennial problems such as nightly disturbance when the pubs close at 2 am, the piles of rubbish left by students when then they go home at the end of the year, which been made much worse by the strike. The council official in the hot seat at the meeting was Chris Lyons, the City Council’s Development Manager. A major concern of the S.F.R.A. has been the changing character of an area as houses are taken over for student occupation. To control this, the City Council has made an Article 4 Direction covering the whole of Southampton. Change of use from a private dwelling house to a house in multiple occupation (HMO) will require planning consent. It may come as a surprise to learn that if a house owner acquires two unrelated lodgers, this will be a change to an HMO requiring planning consent. The Direction comes into force on 23rd March 2012, but is not retrospective.

A planning application is in process for the redevelopment of the car park, youth club and housing office opposite Market Buildings.
A 15 storey tower with 6 storey wings would provide student accommodation for 384 students as well as supermarket, pharmacy, doctor’s surgery with 8 consulting rooms, plus 2 areas for community use to be let on a commercial basis. The community space would revert to alternative commercial use if no community use is identified.

24 car parking places are provided for the existing parking needs plus the whole development, including staff. The parking provision relies heavily on a signed undertaking by students not to keep a car in Southampton which Southampton University External Relations have acknowledged as being impractical to enforce.

The period for public consultation was due to end on 24th March. However, at a meeting on 21st March with councillors and concerned residents (mainly from Parkville Road) it was confirmed by the developer that the proposals are being revised as the result of comments received. The overall scale and car parking within the site remain unaltered. My comments against the development have been uploaded to the HCERA website.

Comment on consultation

Comment on building management plan

Comment on design and access statement

Comment on ecology

Comment on noise

Comment on retail impact

Comment on transport assessment

Once the developer has completed revised documents in early April, further opportunity for public comment will be given. Information about the proposals is available at: http://publicaccess.southampton.gov.uk/PublicAccess/tdc/DcApplication/application_searchform.aspx. Insert application reference 11/00204 and click “Search”.

The intention is to present the development at the Planning and Rights of Way Panel in May, after the local council elections. Cllr Jane Odgers, who has been active in voicing concerns on behalf of Parkville Road residents will be standing down and Cllr Edward Osmond has stated he will not sit on the committee deciding the application, although he will be making a statement generally in support of it. What the election candidates think of the development remains to be seen.

With the threat of a travellers’ transit site at Monk’s Brook removed, you might have supposed that the application to register the land as a village green had been quietly dropped. Indeed the leader of the City Council, Royston Smith did ask the applicant, Janet Ticehurst, to withdraw the application but she refused. Part of the land falls outside the City boundary and for this, Hampshire County Council is the registration authority.They seem to be somewhat keener to progress the application than is the City Council.

How will you be spending the extra bank holiday when Prince William and Kate get married on Friday 29th April? Why not organise a party with your neighbours?
The Committee of HCERA decided they would not be organising anything but may be able to offer help to those who are planning an event. Send us an email or contact your street rep if you think we can help.

The Swaythling Lawn Tennis Club is a small and friendly LTA-affiliated tennis club with two well maintained grass courts, located in the corner of the lower green in Ethelburt Avenue. We welcome beginners and juniors as well as more experienced players. Fees for first time members are £40 for adults, £20 for under 18’s and £80 for families. The new season will start on Sat 30th April. Please come along to one of our mix-ins on Monday and Wednesday evenings, or on Saturday afternoon, for a chat about the club. Further information can be obtained by visiting our website www.swaythlingtennis.org.uk

Annual Plant, Cake and Book Sale / Open Day
The tennis club welcomes you to our annual sale of plants, homemade cakes and books on Saturday 14th May at the club, starting at 1.30p.m. The courts will also be open for the afternoon giving non-members the chance to see the club, pick up information and have a game for free.

I was motivated to write my article in the previous newsletter, by seeing that a resident had made planning applications for things I thought did not require them: like-for-like replacement of widows, front gates and a gravel parking area. Chris Lyons, the City Council’s Planning and Development Manager, has now clarified this.

On replacement windows:
We have discussed this matter within the Planning Department and have agreed that where windows are replaced that are not discernibly different to the existing windows (i.e, like-for-like) then no development will have taken place and therefore consent is not needed. Obviously if the windows are different in any way, even where the glazing bars are thicker, then I would advise any resident to check with the Historic Environment Team before purchase or installation. We try to be pragmatic but we are also aware that small cumulative changes can have a significant impact on a Conservation Area.

On gates and gravel driveway
I have looked into this matter and agree that it does not appear that the proposal required planning permission as the permitted development rights do not appear to have been removed either by the article 4 notice or by conditions on the planning permission. When we receive a planning application we proceed to determine it in good faith that permission was required and unfortunately do not have the resources to check every application submitted to see if permission was needed. As I’m sure you are aware, determining if permission is needed is not as simple a task as it sounds and would take considerable time. The team that process the applications initially are not qualified planning officers and so they would not be expected to check this.

While reading the above explanation, bear in mind that this was a retrospective application.