Assessment Of Proposed Development For 30 Belmore Street, Enmore

This assessment introduces you to hands-on experience as a local government development assessment planner. A comprehensive assessment is something that is done for every application for a local development. The final product of this assignment has been designed to be added to your portfolio should you wish to show a potential employer. Task Using a current development application– draft a report assessing the proposal with a recommendation for the council development committee/council meeting. During the class, we will discuss using a live DA proposal in the Ryde area - you are expected to inspect the site via Google earth and Google street-view. For this task, you are to imagine yourself to be a local council assessment planner.

You have received a development application and now need to make an assessment and recommendation about whether it should be approved with or without conditions or whether it should be refused. You will review planners’ reports to council and use the template provided as a starting point. Assessment criteria i appropriate format and content ii summary of proposal, description of site and application iii identification and analysis of relevant development standards in LEP and DCP iv recommendation v writing and referencing

The proposed development is for the modification and addition of the current dwelling on 30, Belmore Street, Enmore (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018). For the changes to be effected, a few demolitions shall be effected particularly in the back end of the plot. Specifically, the outbuilding, carport and outdoor W/C shall be demolished. The second alteration shall involve the extension of the first floor to incorporate a new bedroom and an extra bathroom. A new garage shall be constructed to replace the demolished carport. Above the garage, the first floor to the existing building shall be extended to construct a loft. Next, a number of skylights shall be added and the open space in the rear shall be landscaped. The proposed changes and constructions shall cost a total of $350,000. The applicant is Urban Style Design PIL.

The proposed development is the alteration and improvement of the existing urban residential building on the location. The building is primarily a residence with all of the major expected amenities for such a structure. The existing building has a carport, access to amenities and an open space with a small vegetable garden (Urban Styles Design Pty Ltd, 2018).The proposed alterations shall improve the building’s capacity to host people, improve the property’s aesthetics, and leave a suitable amount of open space.

The proposed development shall involve a few alterations to the existing structures and new constructions. First, the first floor of the existing house shall be extended to add a new bedroom and an accompanying bathroom. This construction will not increase the height of the building beyond the current height (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018).

Next, the existing carport shall be demolished to make room for the garage and loft. The loft will be detached from the main building by about 33.5 feet (Urban Styles Design Pty Ltd, 2018). The loft will be constructed above the garage space leaving the garage as an open but covered parking area. As a result, the studio shall be on the first floor level of the existing building. In the studio, there shall be a living space, bed space and a bathroom. A staircase shall be constructed floor the garage floor to provide access to the studio (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018).

Next, new and modified lighting and landscaping on the remaining open space shall be done. Soft landscaping shall be done to the remaining open space between the studio and the house building. Skylights shall be installed in selected locations to light up the compound. The vegetable garden located in the current open space shall be done away with to create space for the structures and landscaped open space (Mavridis, 2018). The site shall be connected to the preexisting water, electricity and sewerage amenities.

The following materials (or equivalents) shall be used:

1. Roof sheeting and garage door-color bond steel monument
2. Fascia and gutters-color bond steel monument
3. External wall-face brick pgh nickel flash
4. External walls studio-lightweight fc sheeting monument
5. Windows-pc aluminium monument
6. External walls to dwelling-fc sheeting surfmist

The proposed site is located on the southern side of Belmore Street. It is situated between Belmore Street to the front and Belmore Lane to the rear. The site plot is rectangular in shape. The front side is 7m wide and the rear width is 6.9m (United Consulting Engineers Pty Ltd, 2018). The compound has a total area of 212.5 square meters. The site slopes towards the front with a difference of two meters between the elevation of the rear side and the front side. The front end is only accessible by foot while the rear side is accessible by vehicles.

The Proposal

The site is currently occupied by a two storey building which is located to the front of the site. The building is brick walled and occupies almost the entire width of the site. The house is positioned about 2.65m from the font edge of the site (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018). Consequently, there is little open space in the front end of the site where the house is located. There are two additions to the house including a carport and an outbuilding. The two structures are located to the rear of the site. Further, there is a small vegetable garden in the remaining open space in the rear end of the site.

The locality is predominantly comprised of medium density residential housing. Specifically, the site is part of Newton Central and Enmore North precinct. The precinct is characterized by small plot sizes. Consequently, it is suitable for the construction of low to medium density residential buildings (Planning Laws Solutions, 2018). The adjacent buildings between Belmore Street and Belmore Lane, the buildings are mainly one or two storey homes.

The neighboring areas are a mixture of medium density residences and commercial buildings. The region opposite the rear side of the site across Belmore lane is mainly comprised of four storey residential and commercial buildings. On the other side across Belmore Street, the structures are mainly medium density residential buildings; one or two stories high ( Inner West Council, 2018).

As mentioned previously, the development site is located within a low density residential (R2) zone.  The primary objectives of R2 planning is to maintain the single residence character and the associated landscape (Singh, 2015; New South Wales, 2018). To achieve these objectives, NLEP 2011 imposes some height, floor space ratio (FSR) and the minimum requirements for landscaped area among others as discussed below  (Gurran, 2003; Inner West Council, 2018; Pikes & Verekers Lawyers, 2018).

Zoning-Low Density residential. The property is zoned in a low density (R2) residential location adjoining a B2 rated local business center (LCD) on the Southside.

Height-MLEP 2011 limits the permissible height for low density residential areas to a maximum of 9.5m. Any buildings and/or structures constructed above this height must seek special authorization from planning authorities( Inner West Council, 2018). The current development plans indicate that the tallest part of the proposed development will be way below the limit. Specifically, the one bedroom addition to the first floor will have a maximum height of 6.45 meters while the detached loft will have a 6.1 meters peak. Therefore, the development is in compliance with the height requirements.

Floor Space Ratio (FSR)-the MLEP 2011 outlines that structures constructed in an R2 zone should not exceed an FSR of 0.9:1. This requirements enables a GFA upper bound of about 186 meters square( Inner West Council, 2018). The proposed development’s FSR is 0.89:1. This is below the threshold and is therefore in compliance with the zone’s FSR restrictions.

Landscaped area-MLEP 2011 requires that each single residence should have sufficient landscaped private open space( Inner West Council, 2018). The proposed development shall leave a total of 17.5 square meters of landscaped area on the site. In addition to the open garage space, the open space is sufficient for a single dwelling located in a low density zone.

Materials

Item of Heritage-The site and the structures currently on it are not heritage item

In Vicinity of Item of Heritage- The site is located in the vicinity of two heritage conservation items (34 Belmore Street and Enmore and King Street Conservation Region). However, the development will not affect the qualities of the heritage items nor their structural integrity.

Conservation Area-The site is not located on a conservation area

Acidic Sulphate Soil-MLEP 2011 requires special authorization for construction in regions with acidic sulphate soils(Marrickvile Council, 2011). The proposed development is not located on a region with these soils (Mavridis, 2018).

Flooding-The region is not regarded as a flood risk.

Urban Design

Urban design specifications under MDCP 2011 are intended to generate economic and environmental advantages, enhance urban development quality, improve community sustainability and enhance cultural development among others (Inner West Council, 2011). The proposed development is in compliance with MDCP urban design modalities. First, the proposed modifications are in line with the trends in the immediate surrounding areas. Second, the development will improve accessibility both for the site and the adjacent Belmore Lane. The new garage door shall provide enough space for cars to maneuver better while coming into the site or going to Bemore lane than the current get.

Acoustic and Visual Privacy

MDCP 2011 outlines the controls on both noise and visual privacy for private buildings. The goal is to minimize any conflicts between neighboring properties with regard to noise and sight (Marrickvile Council, 2011; Twafik, 2016; New South Wales, 2012). First, the site is between the 25^th and the 20^th contours on the Australian Noise Exposure Forecast map. The proposed developments are designed well to reduce aircraft noise on these location. Next, the site is beside a small street that does not have heavy and noisy traffic. Further, the open space on the property will be situated on the backend of the plot like in all adjacent properties. Consequently, any noise originating from functions held there is not likely to reach the street nor the living spaces of adjacent dwellings.    

The design of the new developments comply with visual privacy requirements. Specifically, there are no open spaces or balconies facing towards the adjacent properties. Further, apart from one window, all other windows that face towards the adjacent properties are small and high; highlight. This limits the visual view to a small region of the room and the exterior.

Solar Access and Overshadowing

Studies of the solar access and shadowing by the current building on the adjacent properties were conducted on June 21^st 2018. The results showed that the adjacent properties receive the required amount of solar and the structures on the site does not cause excessive shadowing (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018).  

The existing and proposed new developments and additions are designed to receive the maximum direct sunlight. This is as a result of the positions of the openings (windows and doors) to allow as much light as possible within the limits of visual privacy restrictions. The open space also requires adequate sunlight with about 7.5 meter square receiving more than six hours of sunlight daily. As such, the solar access design is in compliance with MDCP requirements (Inner West Council, 2011).

Description of Locality

Parking

MDCP 2011 requires that single dwellings located in R2 zones should have a car parking space with a minimum capacity of one car (Marrickvile Council, 2011). The proposed development includes plans for a single car parking space in the garage. The garage will be accessible from Belmore lane through a huge roller garage door.

Waste Management

With regards to solid waste management, the site shall use the mobile recycling bins provided by the city council. The bins will be located inside the compound in designated locations for the ease of waste disposal and collection. The bins used shall be color coded and labeled in words to indicate the type of materials to be deposited in each bin. This shall enhance the separation of different types of wastes (Inner West Council, 2018). Second, the site is connected to the preexisting sewerage systems. The waste management plan is in accordance with MDCP controls.

Storm Water Management

MDCP 2011 requires developers to conduct a storm water management plan particularly in areas prone to storms and flooding. The storm water management plan for the proposed development is in accordance with MDCP requirements (Mavridis, 2018).

Other MDCP Controls

A detailed analysis of the environmental effects of the new development showed that the proposed development is compliant with other MDCP controls regarding energy efficiency, open space and landscaping, heritage, fire safety and site suitability among others (Mavridis, 2018). Overall, the development has not been found to contravene any MDCP controls significantly.

There have not been other development applications on the site in the recent past. The current structures on the site are (particularly the house) are above ten years old. No major changes that require an application to the council have been made ever since the original construction.

The application for the proposed development was submitted to the council on the 11^th of September 2018 (Urban Style Design Pty Ltd, 2018). The applicant submitted the application and other relevant documentations on the same day. These additional documentations include a detailed description of the intended development in the form of architectural plans and referral documents including the environmental impact assessment.

No community consultations were conducted and neither were there any submissions to the Council from community members. Under MLEP 2011, the council should conduct community consultations under the direction of the ministry. The ministry relies on technical and environmental effects analysis to determine whether a planned development will have significant effects to warrant community consultation ( Inner West Council, 2018). In the case of the planned development at 30 Belmore Street, the technical and environmental analysis and expert referrals showed that the development is compliant with LEP 2011 and MDCP 2011 requirements. Accordingly, there was no need to conduct community consultation.

The is tasked to enhance the flexibility of infrastructure and amenities with regard to their location, to identify any issues that should be deliberated while assessing the suitability of developments next to important infrastructure and enhancing the extent of cooperation between developers and regulatory authorities (NSW Department of Planning and Infrastructure, 2018; NSW Governement, 2018).

Statutory Controls

The applicant submitted an application for a Basix Certificate from the New South Wales Department of Planning and Infrastructure (DPI). The department gave the applicant the certificate with the following comments (NSW Government Department of Planning & Infrastructure, 2018).

Lighting: SEPP 2007 requires that at least 40% of any new or modified lighting systems should make use of light emitting diodes, fluorescent tubes and/or compact fluorescent tubes. The DPI confirmed that the development plans adhered to this requirement.

Fixtures: With regard to fixtures, the DIP imposed three conditions for the development. The three conditions are intended to enhance water conservation by capping the flow of water out of any added or renovated fixtures. The first condition requires that the water flow rate of any new or modified showerheads should not exceed nine liters per minute and/or should be rated at least three stars. The second condition is imposed on any added or renovated toilets and requires that their water flow rate should not exceed four liters for every flush and/or should have a minimum of three star rating. Finally, all new or modified taps are limited to a maximum water flow rate of nine liters per minute and/or minimum three star rating. The authority found that the design specifications submitted met all of the three requirements.

Insulation: The authority specified the minimum insulation requirements for all of the new construction including any walls, roofs, partitions and roofs. The insulation requirements are limited to any new structures or modified structures that were not previously insulated as required. According to the design specifications submitted to the department, the proposed development meets all of the insulation requirements prescribed.

Windows and glazed doors: The DIP further outlined the specification requirements for windows and any glazed doors that may be added or modified as a result of the development. Further, the authority specified that alternatives to the minimum specifications in terms of U-value of the glazing and the solar heat gain. Next, the authority required that any external blinds and other coverings for windows and/or glazed doors should cover the entire openings they are meant to cover when fully closed. The authority found that the plans for the proposed development meet the specified requirements.

The engineer, United Consulting Engineers Pty Limited, reviewed the designs and released a report on 29^th March 2018. In the report, the engineer concluded that the development is independent of the party wall and the structures to be constructed do not depend on the preexisting party wall for both lateral and vertical support. Further, any new support structures to the development are separate from the wall and will have no effect on the wall whatsoever (United Consulting Engineers Pty Ltd, 2018).

The project has been subject to a thorough environmental impacts analysis. The analysis checked the effects of the new development on the environment against the standards set out in MLEP and MDCP 2011. In a report dated July 2018, the environmental impacts examiner concluded that the proposed changes “are of an appropriate scale, bulk, form and height permissible under the MLEP 2011 and consistent with the objectives of the MDCP 2011”. Therefore, the constructions is permissible from an environmental point of view (Mavridis, 2018).

From the foregoing, the application for development on 30 Belmore Street, Enmore has been made and all of the relevant documents submitted. The plans are for the modification and extension of existing building and the construction of new structures. Based on the preceding discussion, the development is in compliance with MLEP 2011 and MDCP 2011. Further, the client has consulted the necessary quality control professionals including a structural engineer, and environmental impacts committee and the state department of planning. All of these authorities have given their approval for the project. Consequently, the development meets the council requirements and is hereby approved without conditions.

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