COMMENTING ON PLANNING
APPLICATIONS AND PUBLIC SPEAKING AT PLANNING COMMITTEE
1. YOUR
CHANCE TO COMMENT
Finding out what members of the public think about
new development and planning applications, is a fundamental part of
the Development Control Service. The
City Council aims to consult as widely as possible, in order that
the views and opinions of local citizens can be considered when the
City Council is determining whether planning permission should be
granted or not.
In addition to consulting the general public, the
City Council also has a responsibility to consult a range of
statutory consultees. These can include:
Highway Authority
Environment Agency
English Heritage
Anglian Water
Anyone can comment on a planning
application. The plans and other
information submitted as part of the application are available to
be viewed at the reception of the Planning Department in City
Hall.
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You can comment in writing, by e-mail, by fax or on
audio cassette tape. We cannot accept
formal comments over the telephone as they could be
misinterpreted.
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There will always be an officer to help you at
Planning Reception, but if you need to speak to a Planning Officer
you may need to make an appointment.
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You may also wish to discuss your concern with your
Ward Councillor, who may wish to support your objection in
writing.
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If you are genuinely unable to come and see the
application e.g. you are unwell or infirm, contact the Planning
Officer who will be able to send you the plans or visit
you.
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We will disregard any objections and comments
containing racial abuse or racist views or defamatory
comments.
Relevant
Comments
When making decisions on planning applications, the
Council can only take into account relevant planning
matters.
These
include whether:
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The proposed use is a suitable one for the
area.
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The appearance and size of the new building is in
keeping with the surrounding area.
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The external alterations are in character with the
existing property
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Adjoining properties will be overshadowed or
overlooked, or will suffer a loss of privacy.
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There will be any increase in noise and disturbance
e.g. from extra traffic or other activities (but not associated
with the construction works).
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There is adequate car parking.
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The new roads and access are safe for road users and
pedestrians.
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Any advertisement would be too brightly lit or out
of scale with its surroundings.
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The proposal accords with planning policies
contained within the City of Lincoln Local Plan.
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The proposal takes proper account of the effect on
established trees which have amenity value within the
site.
We cannot take into
account:
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Loss of your view.
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Boundary and other disputes between
neighbours.
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Loss of trade from individual competing
companies.
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Loss of value to your property.
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Moral objections e.g. to betting shops or amusement
arcades.
All relevant comments will be taken into account
when reaching a decision on a planning application and will be
recorded on the planning application file (which is a public
document available for anyone to look at).
Delegation
Not all
applications are considered at Committee. Only those
where:
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the application is recommended to be granted and
objections have been received
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Councillor asks for the application to be considered
at Committee
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the decision is finely balanced
The same
criteria will apply to those applications which have a request for
someone to speak on them. Therefore a request to speak will not
necessarily guarantee that the application is considered at
Committee.
2. PROCEDURES AT
COMMITTEES
We support public debate about planning applications
and allow for the principle that people may be better able to
communicate their views if they are not limited to making comments
in writing. For those applications
considered at Committee, public speaking allows those directly
affected by the planning process a chance to have their
say.
The remainder of this leaflet answers a number of
basic questions about how the system for public speaking at
Planning Committee works at the City of Lincoln Council.
Who can speak?
A member of the public or their spokesperson who
wishes to object to or support an application will be given an
opportunity to do so providing the arrangements set out below are
complied with. An applicant or agent
appointed to deal with the application will be given the
opportunity to reply to an objector’s
presentation.
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Public speaking will only be permitted where you are
the applicant or agent or your comments have previously been
submitted in writing within the consultation period (or in another
approved form – see above) and the procedure for registering
to speak has been complied with.
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The Democratic Services Officer must be notified by
4pm on the Tuesday immediately preceding the Committee meeting in
either writing, e-mail, fax or by telephone. You must leave your name, address, a daytime
contact number and details of the application. You must also indicate what your interest in the
application is.
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The number of people permitted to speak will be
limited to one from each side (i.e. either in objection or
support). Where several people wish to
speak on an application, the Chair will require that a spokesperson
be appointed to represent the issues of the supporters or objectors
as the case may be.
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If a member of the public speaks in support of an
application or is objecting to an application, the Chair shall
allow one member of the public a right to reply even if that member
of the public has not given prior notice of their right to
speak.
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No member of the public will be permitted to speak
for longer than 5 minutes. Those people
addressing the Committee will be advised when they have 30 seconds
of their allotted five minutes remaining. They will have to cease talking immediately on
being advised that the five minutes are up.
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No member of the public shall distribute any
photographs or other documentation at the committee meeting or
raise any new issues.
If
consideration of the application is deferred for any reason members
of the public wishing to speak will be able to do so either at the
meeting when the proposal is first considered or at the meeting
following the deferral, or both.
Any
Councillor may speak at Committee on behalf of the community either
in support of a proposed development, objecting to it or, indeed
setting out both points of view. They
may then not be involved in voting for or against the
proposal. These speakers will also not
be permitted to speak for longer than 5 minutes.
3. ORDER OF
BUSINESS
The Chair
will open the meeting and invite Councillors to declare if they
have an “interest” in any item on the
agenda. The order set out in the
written agenda will be followed as far as practicable but efforts
to accommodate applications with speakers present will be
taken.
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The Chair will introduce each item and advise the
meeting of the recommendation.
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The Planning Officer will advise the meeting of any
new relevant information and then the Chair will invite the
speakers (including members) to present their views.
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The Committee will then consider the application and
ask questions of the Planning Officer who will be allowed to make
concluding remarks.
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The Committee will then vote on any proposition or
amendment which is moved and seconded.
The Chair will clearly communicate the decision to committee
members, members of the public and others present, i.e. the
press.
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Members of the Committee will not speak or vote on
any matter on which oral representations have been received from or
on behalf of the applicant or any member of the public unless they
have been present throughout the presentation of all such
representations.
To
register your intention to speak at committee you must contact the
Democratic Services Officer on:
Tel:
(01522) 873370
Fax:
(01522) 542569
e-mail:
democraticservices@lincoln.gov.uk