There is a new owner to the Church House, Cliff Road, Old Colwyn. It is intended to be turned into a venue for children’s play parties. I have made enquiries about the type of business proposed and my observations are contained within this document on behalf of the committee of the Residents' Association to the Planning Department of the County Council.
I also attach my notes taken from the application for change of use number
0 / 31472 lodged at the Civic Centre, available for public viewing.
I have visited other similar sites and there is no doubt whatsoever that the project however nice in principle from the point of view of facilities for young children, will have tremendous environmental impact on the area, if only because of the traffic that it will generate.
Please also look at www.houseof play.com this shows the business support which is open to the new owners from a large company.
Please read the documents enclosed and if you personally have concerns please make them known in writing to the Planning Dept and to Local Councillors.
Objections to the change of use application have to be with the Planning Department in writing by the 22nd March 2006
Yours sincerely
David Curtis
Secretary
Old Colwyn East Residents Association
Memorandum from David Curtis, Secretary
To
The Planning Department and Highways Conwy County Borough Council
Councillor David Cowans, Ward County Councillor
Councillor Brian Cossey, Ward County Councillor
The Clerk to Bay of Colwyn Town Council
Committee Old Colwyn East Residents
Local residents
With reference to the application 0 / 31472 for Planning Permission change of use from D1 to D2 for the use of the premises presently know as the St John’s Church House, Cliff Road, Old Colwyn.
The planning application makes particular reference to numbers of persons likely to attend the premises and numbers of vehicles likely to attend the premises during opening hours.
Various assumptions are made throughout the application text and the plan of the development shows certain aspects of exterior development, in particular the provision of car parking on the premises and makes a proposal that the spaces on site will be sufficient for the anticipated visitors throughout the day.
It was necessary in order to comment on the application for me to visit similar sites and examine the environmental impact in those places in order to be able to envisage the probable impact on the Old Colwyn environment.
With this in mind, at 3.30pm on Saturday 25th February 2006, in company with my wife, I visited The Play House, Parc Cefni, Bodffordd, Llangefni, Anglesey.
I noted that the premises were approximately 5 miles from the centre of Llangefni in a countryside location on a development site similar to an industrial estate. The Play House comprises a metal structured industrial unit within which the modular play equipment is constructed. When I arrived, I counted twenty four cars in a very sizeable car park and photographed the layout (Photo A)
When I entered the premises, I counted approximately twenty children on the apparatus and within the facility, together with at least that number of parents or guardians. I noted that on the wall there was what amounted to disclaimers of liability. The children were to be supervised by the parent / guardian etc. etc.
I saw a person bring a birthday cake into the premises in preparation for the next party. There would therefore be another group of up to twenty children and adults with a similar number of cars and also there would probably be double the number of cars during the crossover.
I took leaflets giving details and charges and left to visit the next location which is called The Fun Centre, Christchurch, Bangor Street, Carnarfon.
The first thing that I saw was that the building is a large church with a spire. Immediately behind the building are two very large car parks which are between the
Kwiksave store and Morrison’s store. I arrived at the centre at 4.10pm and there were a large number of children coming out of the premises with parents and guardians. They were all exiting in to the car park and getting into cars. This would have been the 2.pm to 4pm party with the 4pm to 6pm already inside.
I photographed the car parks (photograph 2)
When I entered the building, I noticed that it was very busy with Gog The Dragon very much the centre of attention in the foyer with the children present. I collected leaflets about the site. When I enquired about bookings, I was asked was it for children or adults. Apparently adult parties are catered for at night at Caernarfon, as it is much larger than the Bodffordd premises.
There is a licensed restaurant which provides “preferred drinks of party” to quote the leaflet. This is an issue which needs to be explored as to whether this is a future intention. The premises can also be hired for conferences and special events to include lunch and refreshments.
We did not see the inside of the Caernarfon play area or the café however we noticed that the Bodffordd café area was of modular construction within the building. The sitting and eating area was cramped and the food and drink were of the fast food variety generating waste paper as well as food waste. This is an issue for the Old Colwyn site, as to where the bins will be stored.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now to the specifics of the Old Colwyn site.
The Church House has been out of full time use for many years and in latter years because of the known existence of asbestos inside the building.
The building has declined and the flat roof has been a real problem letting in water and the vandalism it has attracted has not helped.
The interior was made uninhabitable through damp and the floors became unsafe. The electrics have been condemned. The building was sold and there is now a couple who have made an offer subject to exchange of contracts.
The building is to be used for the purpose of a sports hall for children which places it into the Planning D2 classification.
The planning application has been made and is appended to this report.
FACT
The Old Colwyn building is much larger (30 persons per organised party) than the Bodffordd building (20 persons per organised party) and has much in common with the Caernarfon location in terms of size.
What it does not have is the huge car park available at either premises. It should be remembered that the potential for parking at Bodffordd, was for more than forty cars present, parked on site at change over of parties.
FACT
The roads around St Johns Church and Cliff Road in particular are narrow although Cliff Road itself looks wide because of the wide pavements. When the Catholic Church parishioners attend for mass, they park both sides of Cliff Road and there is hardly room for a car to get through. There will be an inevitable problem for emergency vehicles with increased parking regularly.
This is acceptable for a short time as with a church service but cannot be condoned as a norm. There are also church services at the two churches, occasional weddings and funerals which require parking, as has been the case for years. The potential parking associated with this enterprise will place a great strain on the local road infrastructure, bearing in mind that we already have a parking commitment to the local Somerfield store.
FACT
There have been many complaints to the Police about fast driving in narrow areas in the back streets of Old Colwyn in the last few months, this brings with it the potential for congestion and danger to road users.
FACT
The plan accompanying the planning application shows provision of fourteen car parking spaces in the grounds which allows eleven or twelve for customers.
If you examine the plan and look at the front of the premises in reality, there is no way that customers are going to squeeze their cars onto the narrow forecourt of the Church House with the thought of getting out in a congested parking situation with all the others that will be parking.
The only other way that it could be achieved is by tearing down the wall and having a run up off the road across the path and that would not be in keeping with the locality and the buyers own stated intention of improving the church hall back to its original state. It would destroy the ambience of the locality for no reason other than business needs.
FACT
St John’s Church is a living church with regular services. The Sunday start at the premises at 10am when church services start at 11am, in terms of noise and parking alone will have a huge impact on the church.
FACT
The plans show an intention to use the front door of the premises as an entrance which further impacts on the safety of people potentially using that door when people are parking on the front of the premises.
The metal security bars which are installed in the front door at present were put there because of a clear historic public order problem. Because the door is recessed, young people amass in the doorway to drink and take drugs and that is a fact. The bars completely cured the problem, removing them would reverse the cure and make the
location a target out of hours. Public order is a problem in Old Colwyn still with a certain minority and on-street drinking and bad behaviour are still seen.
FACT
The St John’s Church Garden has over the last year been completely improved with new gardens, new railings and the area including Tan y Coed Gardens and Min y Don
Woodland is a nature trail which adds to the Local Nature Reserve known as the Fairy Glen. All these areas are entered in Britain in Bloom to represent Wales.
It is a fact that the new owners intend to take down four trees at the front of the premises which will have the effect of creating a sterile area of tarmac. The addition of the parking problems will do nothing to enhance the area in respect of the environment.
FACT
Somerfield Have reduced the floor size of the Old Colwyn store to allow it to be open until 10pm every evening including Sunday and the store attracts an unruly element outside in the evening.
This development will open every day including Sunday and completely disrupt the local environment. It is a business venture and does not take into account any local environmental issues. This is evidenced by the fact that the new owners have started work on activating their plans without any consultation with the local residents. They have started work on the inside of the premises without the necessary exchange of contracts and planning permission is assumed. They have not even visited the near neighbours to explain their plans and the impact on the locality.
Conclusion
In this day and age it is probably a forgone conclusion that the rights of local people to enjoy the peace of the area, at least on a Sunday will be ridden over rough shod in the drive to bring in jobs and business rates to Conwy.
The Old Colwyn East Residents’ Association makes strong representations that the Councillors of the Ward, the Planning Department of Conwy County Borough Council and the Planning Committee of the Bay of Colwyn Town Council look very carefully at this proposal.
If the decision is to allow the change of use, we ask that strong enforcement measures are put in place at an early stage in the process, to prevent parking on both sides of Cliff Road, Old Colwyn, to minimise the disruption to the local people and that local consultation is involved in that process.
We also ask that consideration be given to restricting the operation of the premises on a Sunday because of the impact on the local residents and Church services. It is a busy area and requires parking for the normal functions of a village community.
Yours sincerely
David Curtis
Secretary
Attachments ~ Notes of the planning application contents
Photographs of Car parking facilities at other similar premises
Plans for St John’s Church House, Cliff Road, Old Colwyn
Application for planning permission 0/ 31472
the applicants are Craig Woodier and Helen Lane
Pant yr Afon, Bellech, Anglesey, LL748TF
Tel 01248 852601
07760162547
Application to change from D1 to D2 use.
The overview of the application
To convert the former Church hall to an indoor soft-play centre / safe play venue for children in age range 0 to 12 years / children’s parties and pay and play sessions.
Public policy relevance
Significant publicly funded resource is being directed to improving and increasing facilities for children. This particular project is consistent with this policy in a number of regards.
1 A safe and secure environment for children to attend with parents/ Given an opportunity to mix with a range of children from a different socio - economic groups and different ages, The facility affords this benefit for parents especially parents and young mothers.
2 Purpose of the facility provides a multi faceted playing environment for children to encourage exercise, thought and interaction with other children in a play environment. Further the design ethic of the equipment is to provide, within the play equipment features which encourage children to undertake the full range of activities generally undertaken in physical play, climbing, running, sliding, squeezing, crawling rolling etc
This encouragement in physical play will implicitly contribute to increase the physical activity off children visiting the facility and therefore implicitly provide a benefit to health
3 The design ethic encourages inclusion. Children with special needs can use the facility with appropriate supervision. The play equipment provided includes a range of interactive equipment set out to be accessible by wheelchair bound users.
The service provision of the facility is consistent with the public policy of encouraging the inclusion.
In summary the whole facility provides facilities consistent with a number of public policies and has the benefit of being a privately funded.
Services offered
There will be three play areas available, similar in principle to examples enclosed with the application.
Junior, toddler and baby areas.
Beverages and light meals will be available for pay and play visitors together with a capacity for 40 children’s parties per week.
Anticipated user base
The facility will have a capacity of 250 persons. Play equipment will have the capacity for 125 children
Ratios are expected to be one child to one adult as an average profile this will swing both ways, in respect of children’s parties there are expected to be more children than adults. During pay and play it is expected there will be more adults than children.
Research reveals existing first class facilities have attracted visitors from many miles away.
This project is specifically targeting local children from Colwyn Bay but it is expected that a proportion will be from adjacent areas.
Access via road for private vehicles and public transport buses
The local railway is likely to be used, as there is a station within a short bus ride. Many will walk to the facility as it is a short distance from residential areas and the local retail outlets.
In addition to individual children and parties the facility will attract organised trips from nurseries, mother and toddler groups and special needs schools during the hours of operation.
PTA registration will be sought.
It is intended to create parking at the front by removing four trees and laying tarmac to create sufficient spaces for anticipated visitors throughout the day.
To encourage environmentally friendly travel, cycle racks will be provided together with price discounts for those walking, cycling or using public transport to get to the facility.
Why this site?
1 This is an appropriate site for age 0 to 12 yrs. Provision needs to be challenging and requires a three tier playing facility, 6m high.
2 Commercial viability, research proves that the vast majority of facilities in the facility are located in a portal frame building with an apex 6 metres high, the eaves are four metres high.
3 Properties in Retail centres tend to attract rental in excess of £4 to £6 per square foot. In commercial premises the viability of soft play is unlikely.
Ease of access for user groups
While all members of families will patronise the facility, the main users will be younger mums with toddlers, nurseries and special needs schools during hours and mums with children 0 to 12 yrs, normally in the late afternoon and at weekends.
For these users easy safe access is crucial generally mums will not travel to a town centre to use soft play especially in inclement weather and during darkness.
Further, much of the weekend use is likely to be children’s parties, perhaps eight to ten parties per day with up to 30 children per party.
Since children invited to a party are dropped off by parents to be picked up later, a town centre location is a potential nightmare.
Certainly some parents will fail to heed the vehicle access parking restrictions, with inevitable congestion and health and safety implication for all concerned
Employment generated by the scheme
Two centre managers, Monday to Sunday 10 am to 6pm 2x 35 hours= 70 hours.
Two chefs, Monday to Sunday 10am to 6pm @ 35 hours= 70 hours
Two receptionists Monday to Sunday 10am to 6pm @ 35 hours=70 hours
Two party hosts Monday to Sunday 10am to 6pm @ 35 hours=70 hours
Ten supervisors Monday to Sunday @15 hours =150 hours
Two cleaners @14 hours= 28 hours
General summary
St John’s church house has been neglected for a number of years. I wish to renovate it to its original state. It will have a positive effect on the local community and contribute to the improvement of the quality of life for children who use it.
It will be a facility of excellence in all regards with British standard 8409 as the standard, in the development of which, the House of Play main equipment supplier contributed.
This project is consistent with the ambition of public policy, providing a safe accessible play based activity centre for children, with the benefits of private funding.
The application
Employees - twenty
Three vehicles belonging to employees at the site each day
30 other vehicles using the site.
Refuse and effluent
The applicant will arrange the collection of disposable nappies.
Four trees will be felled
There is no public right of way through the land
An application to change the use of the St John’s Church House to a Children's Play venue
is likely to involve harsh environmental factors particularly Parking on the roads
is likely to involve harsh environmental factors particularly Parking on the roads