This meeting was about whether to grant planning permission for a mixed-use development at 157-159 Hornsey Park Road. The meeting report pack also included an update on major proposals in the borough. A further report listed applications that had been determined by officers acting under delegated powers.

HGY/2024/0466 157-159, Hornsey Park Road, London, N8 0JX

This application requested permission to demolish existing structures at 157-159 Hornsey Park Road and build two buildings of between four and six storeys, providing 32 residential units and a flexible commercial floorspace of 97 square meters, along with landscaping, a new pedestrian route, parking for cars and cycles, and waste facilities.

The report on the application explained that the site is located in the Noel Park ward, within both the Wood Green and Haringey Heartlands Growth Area, which is an area identified for growth in the Haringey Local Plan 2017, and the Wood Green Opportunity Area, which is an area identified for growth in the London Plan 2021. The site is also located within a designated Local Employment Area and Regeneration Area, where Policy DM38 of the Haringey Development Management DPD applies. DM38 requires that mixed-use developments in this area maximise the amount of employment floorspace.

The officers reported that:

The proposal would redevelop a brownfield site, with a high-quality mixed-use development which responds appropriately to the local context and would fulfil and meet the requirements of Site Allocation SA21 ‘Clarendon Square Gateway’

The report went on to say that the proposal will provide a total of 32 new homes.

The applicant had undertaken a viability assessment that found that the scheme could only viably deliver 6 shared ownership units on site, but that this would be unviable to deliver and manage, and no registered providers had expressed an interest in taking on the units. In these circumstances the Council's Planning Obligations SPD allows for a payment in lieu to be provided instead of on-site affordable housing. The report concluded that a Payment in Lieu of £600,000 was the maximum reasonable amount to be provided.

The officers reported that the development would achieve a site-wide reduction of 93% in CO2 emissions over Building Regulations Part L 2021 if it was connected to a planned district energy network, or 68% if heated by air source heat pumps. The applicant had agreed to enter into a Section 106 legal agreement to make a carbon offset payment of £26,505 plus a 10% management fee in the event that the scheme could not be connected to the district energy network.

The report requested that the committee authorise the Head of Development Management to grant planning permission subject to conditions and the signing of a Section 106 legal agreement securing:

• A financial contribution of £600,000 towards the provision of affordable housing off-site;
• A Section 278 Highway Agreement for footway improvement works and other highway works;
• A contribution towards amendment of the local Traffic Management Order;
• Three years free membership for all residents and a credit of £100 per year per unit for the first five years in a car club;
• A contribution towards a Construction Logistics and Management Plan;
• Implementation of a Residential and Commercial Travel Plan and monitoring fees;
• A Public Access Management Plan;
• A commitment to upload energy data to the GLA's Be Seen monitoring platform;
• An Energy Plan and a Sustainability Review;
• Connection to the planned district energy network; and
• A Local Training and Employment Plan.

If the committee chose not to grant planning permission, the report asked them to authorise the Head of Development Management to refuse planning permission for the reasons set out in the report. These reasons were that without the legal agreement, the development would be contrary to policies relating to affordable housing provision, its impact on the highway network, and its sustainability credentials.

Major Sites Update

The meeting was also scheduled to include an update on the progress of major developments in the borough. In particular, the meeting report pack advised that the development at the Frederick Messer estate in South Tottenham had been identified as one of the Council's housing delivery sites, and that the Council's housing delivery team had been working through the proposals, and it would be submitted to planning in due course.

The report pack also advised that discussions with the applicant for the Omega Works development at Hermitage Road in the Warehouse District were ongoing.

Delegated Decisions

The report pack included a list of planning applications that had been decided by officers acting under delegated powers.