Planning permission granted for new Islandmagee farm dwelling
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has granted planning permission for a proposed new farm dwelling with a new access to the public road adjacent to 120 Brown’s Bay Road, Islandmagee.
A development management officer’s report said policy regarding a dwelling on a farm business indicates that planning permission can be granted if a farm business is “currently active and has been active and established for the last six years”.
The council report said that Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) has confirmed that the farm business has been “established for more than six years and has claimed subsidies in the last six years”.
The site is on land for which payments are “currently being claimed”, it noted. "Therefore, there is an active and established farm business in accordance with policy and this first criterion has been met.”
"The proposed site is located adjacent and to the east of existing farm buildings/yard, and would be considered both clustered and visually linked with these farm buildings. From both directions along Brown’s Bay Road and when travelling along Lunnon Road, the proposed dwelling will be viewed as forming an integral part of this building group, the report continued.
"The proposed dwelling has a simple rural two-storey form with single-storey side and rear extensions. The design is considered appropriate to the rural setting.
"The siting of the proposed dwelling at the roadside and adjacent to existing farm buildings is considered acceptable. The proposed dwelling will be positioned in a relatively lower lying part of the site with rising land to the rear and will not appear prominent and generally in keeping with the scale of adjoining buildings.
"As the proposed dwelling will visually cluster with the existing farm buildings, it will not create a suburban build-up of development or create a ribbon of development.”
It was also stated: “The existing farmyard access is located close to a bend in the road and existing building, making visibility poor. The proposal seeks to create a new vehicular access further along the road, using the existing field opening. This access allows for better visibility.
"The proposal includes the removal of existing roadside hedging to provide visibility splays. However, a new native species hedge will be planted behind the splays and additional native species planting is proposed around the access.”