Tontine Street: Further issues emerge with planning application
The first law of holes states: “if you find yourself in a hole, stop digging“. Unfortunately, Folkestone & Hythe District Council Planning department do not seem to understand the first law of holes.
The Tontine Street planning application – Y19/0016/FH – has taken another twist. It appears it is not just the technical issues around the viability assessment or granting of the permission which we believe was unlawful, but issues surrounding the s106 agreement have come to light.
The minutes of the planning committee held on the 20th Oct 2020, with regard to the Tontine Street planning application Y19/0016/FH – state:
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RESOLVED: Permit
That planning permission is granted subject to the conditions set out at the end of the report and the applicant entering into a S106 agreement securing payments towards Folkestone GP provision, community services and off-site contributions towards affordable housing and that delegated authority be given to the Chief Planning Officer to agree and finalise the wording of the conditions and the legal agreement and add any other conditions that he considers necessary.
As we understand planning consent was not granted by the 4 Tory Cllrs, 1 UKIP Cllr and 1 Independent Cllr who voted in favour of the application, on the 20th Oct.
Planning permission is only granted on the date stated on a decision notice. As yet no decision notice for the Tontine Street planning application – Y19/0016/FH – has been granted, as the outstanding matters, regarding the s106 agreement have not been resolved so the Council say.
However, when one looks at the report DC/20/22 issued to Cllrs on the planning committee for the Tontine Street application, it states in it’s final sentence on page 24:
Informative
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1. This development is subject to the terms of the accompanying s.106 legal agreement.
This just gets better day by day.
Does anyone know what they are doing in the council?
It sounds like they are a bit like Bernard Cribbings hit song from the sixties.
Incredible and unbelievable.
Excellent work once again by the Shepway Vox Team.
Excellent reporting.
This story has moved from the realms of the bizarre- over the viability assessment not being released to the unbelievable – over the existence/non-existence of a Section 106 Agreement.
I wonder if there are internal problems within the Planning Department that have caused this latest farrago.