RETROSPECTIVE plans to allow a five-bed agricultural workers dwelling near Aberystwyth to be used as a holiday let, instead of a planning officer preference for potential affordable housing, have been given a breathing space.
Ceredigion County Council’s development management committee meeting of September 11 was recommended to refuse an application by Mr and Mrs D I and J E Evans to use Parc Y Deri, near Llanilar as a short-term holiday let on a temporary basis.
Parc y Deri, which has a lounge, sunroom, kitchen, dining room, utility, office, games room, five bedrooms, a garage, wet room and two bathrooms, was previously granted planning permission as a second dwelling for an agricultural worker at Llwynhywel, the main farmstead of which is approximately 120 meters to the east.
It is recommended for refusal on the grounds that planning policy states that rural enterprise dwellings should be occupied by qualifying rural workers, or, if there is no qualifying rural worker to occupy the dwelling, then the dwelling may be occupied by those in affordable housing need, with no provision for rural enterprise dwellings to serve as short term holiday lets.
The council consider that, despite its large size, the dwelling could still serve a useful purpose in meeting an identified housing need, a report for planners stated.
The report added: “The covering letter submitted in support of the application suggest that attempts have been made to rent the property out to a qualifying person however there was no interest. It is noted however that the marketing exercise was restricted to a private sign and word of mouth.”
The report said the applicant had been invited to submit an application to update the existing occupancy condition to a wider range of those employed in rural enterprises or those in need of affordable housing, adding: “The applicant via their agent has declined this invitation citing the large size of the property and associated running cost to be prohibitive to those in affordable housing need.”
The application was referred to the committee by local county councillor Cllr Meirion Davies, who -the report says – said there was no demand for it as an agricultural use, the rent at even a 50 per cent rate would be around £1,000 per month which did not make it affordable, and that retired people are not looking to rent a five-bedroom dwelling in the open countryside, they normally want to downsize and move to a village or town.
At the meeting, members heard Parc Y Deri was already successful as a holiday let, with members discussing the potential length of the temporary period it could be let, with figures of up to 20 years mooted.
Members agreed to a ‘cooling-off’ period to establish the level of marketing for its potential rental had been made, the scheme returning to a future meeting.
