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Plans for a bookable “dog walking field” on the outskirts of Sunderland have been submitted to council improvement bosses.
Sunderland City Council’s planning division has acquired an utility for a plot of land close to Back Lane and Hill Lane within the Penshaw space.
The utility is in search of permission to alter using agricultural land and to create a “secure dog walking field” with new access from Back Lane, a observe and a parking space.
A planning, design and access assertion submitted to council officers supplies extra particulars on plans for the 0.2 hectare website, which sits inside a wider agricultural subject parcel.
This contains “one bookable field to be used for dog walking and exercise” secured by a fence and gates, with prospects supplied with access codes upon reserving periods.
Supporting paperwork stated the canine walking subject could be “rentable for exclusive use and would offer 60 minutes booking sessions with a cross-over period in between each session”.
Proposed opening instances could be throughout sunlight hours, with opening hours between 8am and 7pm in summer time months and decreased instances in the course of the winter.
An on-line reserving system would additionally management the variety of guests and visitors actions to and from the location.
According to planning paperwork, there could be a most of 5 dogs allowed within the subject at anybody time (per single reserving).
Those behind the scheme famous there was an “increasing demand for secure dog walking fields” which assist to “alleviate pressures on other public open spaces and recreational areas”.
The planning, design and access assertion provides: “The dog walking field provides professional dog walkers and private households with an exclusive safe and secure recreational space to let their dog(s) off the lead without fear of poor recall, conflict with livestock or mixing with other dogs.
“It also provides a useful facility for those with mobility issues or young children, or for those who need to exercise their dogs safely without covering large distances, as well as being a safe space for any anxious dogs, service dogs or dogs with behavioural issues”.
It was additionally argued that the plan would help a “small local rural business” and the local people, together with the “health and well-being of dogs and owners”.
A heritage assertion submitted with the plan famous the parking space would accommodate as much as two vehicles and could be “large enough to accommodate a panel van used by professional dog walkers”.
Elsewhere, the brand new access observe could be product of ‘grasscrete’, a mix of concrete and grass, to “ensure it has a discreet appearance in the wider grassland and landscape”.
The heritage assertion provides: “The overall appearance of the site is rural given its location within the countryside.
“The existing fencing and gates take a rural and discreet appearance and are both characteristic and commonplace in rural areas.
“No permanent fixed buildings or structures are proposed as part of this application that would materially affect the appearance of this site”.
In this context, it was argued that there could be “no harm to the significance of nearby (heritage) assets”, together with Penshaw Monument, “as a result of the change of use”.
A call on the planning utility might be made as soon as a interval of council session has concluded.
Sunderland City Council’s planning division lists a call deadline of June 5, 2024.
For extra data on the planning utility or to trace its progress, go to the council’s planning portal web site and search reference: 24/00625/FUL
