Appendix 2 - Objection J Craig
Perth and Kinross Council · 27 March 2024
Back to Licensing Committee — 27 March 2024 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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1 Civic Licensing From: Jason Craig Sent: 22 October 2023 22:14 To: CDS STL Subject: FOA Licensing Department: Objection to Short Term Let License application - Tigh Na Beannaich, 5 Gartwhinzean Loan, Powmill, FK147LU (Licence Number PK12308P) Attachments: PK12308P Objection to short term let application number.docx; PK12308P Objection to short term let application number.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from an external organisation. Do not follow guidance, click links, or open attachments unless you have verified the sender and know the content is safe. To whom it may be concerned, Please find attached my objection to the application for a short-term letting licence for my neighbouring property at 5 Gartwhinzean Loan, Powmill, FK14 7LU. I understand the council expects concerns from neighbours to be raised with the operators in the first instance, however, as you will see in my letter, there are historic and ongoing concerns raised with the running of this short term let of which the operators are aware, and to which there has been no satisfactory resolution. Unfortunately, our last hope is to raise this objection with the Licensing Department. I hope I have been able to cover the issues in accordance with the guidelines specified on the Perth and Kinross Council website, however, I would be happy to discuss these concerns in greater detail at any time convenience to the license committee. On a final note, I would like to identify that no public notice has been displayed (contrary to the requirements of application process). Kind Regards, Jason Craig Tel: Address: 7 Gartwhinzean Loan, Powmill, FFK147LU
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Jason Craig Bruthach Mhor, 7 Gartwhinzean Loan Powmill Perth and Kinross FK147LU 22nd October 2023 To whom it may concern, I am wri�ng to object to the applica�on for a short-term le�ng license for the address ‘Tigh Na Beannaich’ at 5 Gartwhinzean Loan, Powmill, FK14 7LU (Licence Number PK12308P; ID – 478). Please note that despite PKC guidance, the owner of the property has failed to engage with the neighbours about their inten�ons to apply for a licence, and there has been no public Site No�ce displayed in the vicinity of the property. This is despite the applica�on going to PKC almost one month ago. This objec�on is made on the grounds of: 1. The loca�on, character, or condi�on of the premises; 2. The nature and extent of the proposed ac�vity; 3. The kind of persons likely to be in the premises; 4. The possibility of undue public nuisance; and 5. Public order/ safety I will address these points below. 1. The loca�on character, or condi�on of the premises; and 2. The nature and extent of the proposed ac�vity Gartwhinzean Loan is a quiet country-side setlement consis�ng of 16 houses. The residents composed of re�rees and young families. Most of the neighbours get on very well and there is a strong sense of community between the long-term residents of this street. This is interrupted only by the presence of this short term let, which regularly sees large groups of people with no interest or investment in the community, stay for an average of 3-4 days and move on again. The turnover can be highly frequent, and it is not uncommon for one set of guests to depart in the morning with another set arriving in the a�ernoon. With capacity set at 13 people, this means that is it not unusual for there to be 26 strangers come and go in our street each week. For a street that has a long-term popula�on of closer to 30 this is highly unsetling. The average number of people per household on Gartwhinzean Loan is two or three, and therefore a requested capacity of 13 in the short term let clearly puts the group sizes out of character with the residen�al nature of the immediate area. In the immediate houses surrounding this property there is an elderly couple, two re�red couples, and one young family with a small child aged 7. The representa�on of more vulnerable groups in the long-term residents who are reliant on neighbourly support and their local community for safety suggests that a property for large, transient groups is not suitable for, or in keeping with, the character of the loca�on. The con�nued opera�on of a short-term le�ng facility within the neighbourhood would con�nue to adversely impact the character and amenity of the local area, par�cularly the residen�al amenity of those living permanently in the residen�al street.
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3. The kind of persons likely to be in the premises; and 4. The possibility of undue public nuisance Given the size of the property, it’s stated capacity, the cost associated with its use and the feature of the in-door swimming pool - the house is designed to appeal to large groups and regularly gets described as a ‘party house’. On at least two of the lis�ngs the property is listed and promoted as a ‘Celebra�on House’ - see screenshots below taken on 5th October 2023: Historically the property has atracted large groups for par�es; including hen and stag par�es. A�er complaints made to the Perth and Kinross planning enforcement department, a Closing Report from PKC directed that the property is to be “occupied as a whole to one family or extended families, and this is not let to stag and hen par�es” (report available for case reference number 22/00011/STL).
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As recently as 19th May 2023 the property hosted a hen party (for which there is photographic evidence of a group of females, gathered and drinking alcohol in the back garden while spor�ng sashes that say ‘Hen Party’). The owner seemed unaware or ambivalent that the guests were hos�ng a hen party, and further was unaware that this was expressly not permited within the Closing Report from the Perth and Kinross Planning Enforcement Agency (case reference number 22/00011/STL). Furthermore, despite the aforemen�oned Closing Report sta�ng that the house is to be “occupied, as a whole to one family or extended families”, there is clear evidence that contrary to how the property con�nues to be used. From July 2023, there is publicly available evidence of the property being let to groups of friends rather than families (see screenshot of review from John, below, taken on 5th October 2023).
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The property is designed to be let to large groups (up to 13 adults) which requires areas for gathering – this naturally results in groups o�en gathering at night to smoke, drink, and converse in outdoor areas (given that smoking is not permited indoors). Unfortunately, this area is only 16 meters from my bedroom window and 18m from the bedroom window of my son (see screen shots below from Google Earth with distances). As the rest of the street is so quiet, the noise carries. It has kept my family awake on many nights over the years that we have lived here. When guests regularly enter and leave the house, the outside light comes on and noise from inside the house (music and loud conversa�on – o�en with loud, coarse language – again for which there is video evidence) is carried outside. The pool has been fully equipped with a disco ball, mul�coloured lights, and a sound system wired throughout the house (again for which there is video evidence). The fact that the pool is surrounded only by a single-glazed structure further amplifies the sound and light pollu�on out into the neighbourhood.
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When guests arrive, there are o�en disturbances from late-night grocery deliveries. We have been woken by the sounds of glass, cans and general rubbish being disposed of late at night and early in the morning as unfortunately the bin storage is located next to our bedrooms. This has occurred as recently as Sunday 8th October 2023 where guests were loudly disposing of garbage at 10pm. Furthermore, we have regularly been disrupted by the arrival of buses late at night delivering large, loud, intoxicated groups back to the property. The disrup�on, stress, insecurity, and anxiety this causes to my family and other neighbours nega�vely impacts our quality of life and my experience of living in this neighbourhood. 5. Public health and safety On occasions where the owners have been contacted regarding issues, there have regularly been several days delay to respond or responses indica�ng that the owners are unable to atend/ contact the guests. The owners manage the property themselves, and if they are away, there is no management whatsoever. In these scenarios we have been le� to put up with the disturbances ourselves which is very anxiety inducing. It is in�mida�ng to approach a large group of intoxicated strangers and ask them to please keep the noise down or to move inside. My family have on occasion felt unsafe in doing so. We have also sought advice from Ci�zens Advice, as well as Perth and Kinross safer communi�es’ team, and Perth and Kinross planning council. None of which resulted in the owners taking sufficient ac�ons to sa�sfactorily minimise the disrup�on to the neighbouring proper�es. We have been required to call the police on several occasions to help deal with an�-social behaviour. The behaviour has included, but is not limited to, noise nuisance and drunken behaviour such as screaming/ shou�ng, loud music, and loud swearing (which is par�cularly concerning as I have a young child who can hear these discussions). Fireworks have also been let off from the short-term let (during par�es) that could easily land in surrounding proper�es. I understand that I am not the only resident who has felt no op�on but to complain to police. I am aware of at least four occasions of the police atending within the last two years to deal with an�-social complaints/ behaviour. There seems to be a lack of awareness/willingness to comply with the minimal by the owners. For example, when a concern was raised regarding the hen party which took place in May, the owners informed us that they believed that it was their decision whether they accepted stag par�es, and that it was not a decision which had been imposed by PKC (I can provide copies of the text exchange to corroborate this, if required). Their belief was obviously incorrect, and we had to direct them to the aforemen�oned Closing Report which they had been provided, and which expressly forbids use for these purposes. This non-compliance alludes to an ongoing sense of dismissiveness from the applicants about the nega�ve impacts that the use of the house has on the neighbouring proper�es.
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Non-compliance with applica�on process for short-term license As men�oned at the start of this leter, regarding the process of applying for a license for short-term le�ng, despite publicly available and clear guidance detailing applicants responsibility (i.e. “you must no�fy neighbours of intent to apply” - htps://www.pkc.gov.uk/media/50146/Short-term-Lets- Informa�on-and-Guidance/pdf/Short-term_Lets_- _Informa�on_and_Guidance.pdf?m=637998779188800000) - at �me of wri�ng, neither I, nor any of my neighbours have been engaged with by the applicants. I believe this is because the applicants are fully aware of the difficul�es their property has caused the neighbourhood and are not willing to take our neighbourhood’s concerns into account. Furthermore, the guidance indicates that the applicants must clearly “display a site no�ce at or near the premises so it can be conveniently read by the public.” Despite the applica�on being made on 28th September 2023 (according to the Perth and Kinross register), at the �me of wri�ng (22nd October 2023) there is s�ll no visible no�ce. The applicants have not atempted to engage or provide reassurance despite being aware of the nega�ve impact of the short term let on the community, and despite having been on the premises mul�ple �mes recently, having our phone numbers, and email addresses. This could and should be a lovely family home in a nice community. Thank you for providing the opportunity to raise our concerns. I hope that these are taken into considera�on as we would dearly love to be able to live in peace and security in our own home. Kindest regards, Jason Craig