Seven-bed HMO across from Oldham park gets green light

The application originally sought permission for the HMO as well as an extension to accommodate two commercial units at a property on Coalshaw Green Road, in Chadderton.

The property sits on the edge of Coalshaw Green Park and is close to Coalshaw Green Contact Centre, which supports families and children in Oldham.

However, the commercial aspects were removed following an objection from the highways officer.

Now, the final proposal, granted on Monday (December 8), will see the creation of a HMO with seven bedrooms, five of which will house two people each and two of which will house one person each.

There will be one kitchen and dining room on the ground floor, and one kitchen and utility room on the first floor.

The change of use will not cause any external changes, however, there will be a 'slight 'improvement to the existing front bay window that will benefit from a hipped roof as opposed to the existing flat roof.

A new boundary fence and bin store are to be located at the rear, which were also found to be acceptable in design.

Lastly, a new patio door will be installed on the ground floor rear elevation, its design of which is also acceptable.

The application received 21 objections from neighbours, with people raising concerns over the proximity to a children's park, noise and disturbance from tenants, parking issues, the concentration of HMOs in the area, and strain on public services.

One objection said: "My main concerns with this plan are the existing inadequate doctor and dental provision in the area.

"Demand already far exceeds availability. Inadequate refuse facilities and waste removal on the property.

"A current dwelling houses around 3-4 people, with a ratio of 3 bins to that. They are suggesting an incorrect ratio for the dwelling, with no mention of the commercial refuse facilities.

"There is no parking for additional people or possible visitors to the commercial units.

"During construction, is there a proposal on how they will manage and mitigate impact to pedestrians or the highways with work vehicles/ building waste removal, given the proximity to the junction?

"With this many people in the single dwelling, there is only one reference to one fire door; surely this may be inadequate."

Regarding residential amenity, for future and existing occupants, the planning officer's report said: "The proposed development complies with space standards as indicated in the Council’s HMO standards document.

"The rear of the property provides secure outdoor amenity space with provision for secure bin storage along with cycle storage within the existing garage, all of which is considered acceptable.

"The property has one adjoining neighbour adjacent to the existing garage, which will remain.

"The change of use will not significantly impact this neighbour in regard to noise, loss of light, outlook, privacy or overlooking.

"Surrounding uses are predominantly residential, and there is a children’s park and support centre to the rear of the site.

"There is no evidence to suggest the location of this proposed HMO would cause nuisance to these existing uses."

It also stated that the council does not have set standards that residential proposals must meet in terms of amount of parking provision.