House plans passed second time round after £221 Cannock Chase payment agreed
Plans for two new homes have been approved by councillors just months after they were rejected – after an agreement to pay £221 was secured.
Cannock Chase Council refused to grant planning permission for a house on Old Penkridge Road in Cannock to be demolished and replaced with two new homes last year.
Committee members were concerned the two-storey home earmarked for the back of the site would overlook neighbouring properties and affect their privacy.
The application went to appeal, but the case was also dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate.
However the council’s reasons for refusal were not backed by the inspector.
They had dismissed the application because there had been no legally enforceable mechanism in place to secure a mitigation measure to protect the Cannock Chase Special Area of Conservation (SAC).
Applicants seeking permission for new developments that are deemed to have an impact on the Chase area of conservation are required to make a £221 payment towards addressing their proposal’s effects if consent is granted.
The Old Penkridge Road application was resubmitted to Cannock Chase Council – but this time with a legally enforceable agreement to pay the £221.
This meant the inspector’s reason for dismissing the appeal had been resolved, and the resubmitted application was recommended for approval at Wednesday’s planning committee meeting.
Residents who objected to the planned development have described the £221 contribution as a bribe.
Martyn Rochelle said: “I get it when the likes of Asda pay for a park to compensate for loss of other green space but do the public realise that it is used at individual level?
“This feels like a bribe to me. It seems unfair that a previously declined application can be agreed if they pay a ‘bribe’ and local residents impacted by the garden grabbing build lose out.”
David Haywood told the meeting: “We’re making a complete mockery of the system if this is allowed to go through. The council is receiving a financial incentive to pass this application.”
Cannock Chase Council previously approved plans for two bungalows on the site.
Heather Sutton, speaking in support of the latest application, said: “The appeal was dismissed by the inspector not because of the overall development, but simply because there was no agreement in place for the SAC. An undertaking covering this standard financial contribution is now in place.
“Natural England have no objections to the proposal – they consider the proposed development will not have significant impact.”
Committee members went on to vote in favour of the application.
Councillor Alan Dudson said: “The only problem the inspector had was the Section 106 money. If this application was not allowed and it went to appeal the inspector would have no problem passing it.”
Fellow committee member Doug Smith said: “I think we all understand the only reason the appeal didn’t go through was a technicality. Now it has been fixed – if we didn’t allow this and it went to appeal we would lose.”
