Issue - meetings

Proposal Description: Conversion to HMO and addition of bike storage.

The application was introduced. Members were referred to the update sheet which provided additional information regarding several matters including:

1.    That page 49 had been updated to record the applicant's name.

2.    That page 49 had been updated to include “Recommendation: Permit”

3.    An updated nutrient budget calculator had been submitted and that the figures shown on page 56 for nitrates and phosphates had been updated but did not affect the nutrient mitigation method or conclusions reached.

In addition, the case officer provided a verbal update and provided further information concerning the following:

1.    That an additional condition be included relating to nutrient neutrality, this would be the standard, Grampian condition.

2.    That a further condition be included, limiting the occupancy to align with the granted permission, which allowed for six individual tenants, with each tenant occupying one bed per room.

During public participation, Mitchel Cowan spoke in support of the application and answered members' questions.

Councillor Chris Westwood, Cabinet Member for Housing spoke as the Cabinet Member and expressed several points which could be summarised as follows.

1.    He described the initiative to repurpose 59 Colebrook Street for refugee temporary accommodation, leveraging government resettlement scheme funding and noting the property's vacancy since June 2021.

2.    He highlighted the prior approval by Cabinet and Full Council in November 2023, with financial backing from Hampshire County Council and the Local Authority Housing Fund.

3.    That the property’s central location advantages included training, employment, and transport access, promoting community integration for resettlement scheme participants.

4.    He believed that the application addressed noise concerns related to a nearby pub through a comprehensive noise assessment alongside compliance with building regulations for sound resistance.

5.    He responded to the City of Winchester Trust's call for more communal space and the suggestion to repurpose the ground floor bedroom, emphasizing the adequacy of proposed communal facilities.

6.    Finally, he stressed the critical need for additional temporary accommodation in Winchester to address the homelessness crisis and improve housing options for those at risk.

The committee proceeded to ask questions and debate the application.

RESOLVED

The committee agreed to grant permission for the reasonsand subject to the conditions and informatives set out in the report, the update sheet, and the verbal update.