Ian Stevens at Fisher German has recently secured planning permission for residential redevelopment of a Grade II listed building on the edge Chester’s historic city centre.

The listed property, at Richmond Place, is a local landmark and has been used as offices in recent years.

The Georgian building dates back to the early nineteenth century and is predominantly brick built with a stone verandah. There is a two-storey outrigger to the rear, a later addition to the site.  

The application proposed to convert the main listed building and provide eight apartments.  The rear outbuilding was to be demolished and a new six-apartment building proposed in its place.

There were several planning issues to consider in redeveloping the site. Not only is the main building listed but the site is in a conservation area, surrounded on all sides by development. A sensitive design solution was required to ensure an appropriate and viable re-use of the historic building.

Ian led a project team of architects, historic building specialist, ecology and tree consultants to develop a clear strategy for the site. Early pre-application discussions with Cheshire West and Chester Council helped to agree design and heritage principles for the scheme.

As with most aspects of planning, heritage and conservation requires a thorough understanding of regulation, policy, finance and economic viability. Please hit on the link to see plans http://194.187.35.179/Planning/StreamDocPage/obj.pdf?DocNo=2359708&PDF=true&content=obj.pdf

Officers supported the design scheme, concluding that ridding the property of some later, insensitive alterations and restoring elements of its original character were beneficial features. The new contemporary designed apartment building was also regarded as a more positive contributor to the setting of the listed building, together with the surrounding car parking and landscaping improvements.

Ian prepared a financial viability assessment of the scheme. We successfully negotiated with the Council’s viability officer to provide an off-site affordable housing contribution with no other planning obligations required.  Planning permission was granted by the Council in January 2017 and the site is currently being marketed for sale by Fisher German’s agency team. An offer has successfully been accepted for the property already and the sale is going through.

We are currently working on other heritage and conservation applications in the north west. These include the provision of overnight accommodation at an historic Grade II* listed hall in the Cheshire Green Belt; and with exploring options for the sensitive redevelopment of a Grade II listed  church in Warrington.

If you wish to discuss what opportunities are available for your sites, then please contact our north west regional planner Ian Stevens on

01244 409668 or email ian.stevens@fishergerman.co.uk  

First there was the two-year delay to the business rates revaluation.  Then came potential massive rates hikes and changes to the appeals process.And just before the new regime started on 1 April, the Chancellor performed an apparent U-turn in his first Budget, creating further uncertainty.

No wonder there has been widespread confusion across the business world on the first changes to the ratings system for seven years.

Prior to the Budget, the headlines screamed of business rates doubling or more and curbs on appealing unfair revaluations – a potentially bitter pill after one million appeals were lodged against the 2010 listing’s 1.9 million hereditaments, and a staggering 300,000 of those were still unresolved in January this year!

That has been replaced by a more complicated process which makes it difficult for business owners to assess their position without the need for professional expertise.

From last month, all ratepayers wishing to appeal their rateable value (RV) must employ the ‘Check, Challenge, Appeal’ process, supporting their claim with substantial evidence – with the prospect of fines for submitting incorrect analysis.

On the plus side for occupier clients, many will benefit from an increase to the Small Business Rates Relief (SBRR) threshold, with the RV to qualify for 100% SBRR doubled to £12,000 and tapered relief up to £15,000.

Also, the standard business rates multiplier of £0.48 will be applied on RVs up to £51,000, rather than £18,000 currently.

And Phillip Hammond MP announced three further measures in his Budget:

• A cap so rates rise by no more than £50pm for small businesses losing rate relief
• A £1,000 discount on business rates for pubs with RVs of less than £100,000 (90% of pubs)
• A £300m discretionary relief fund for local authorities to distribute

Turn on any tap in Birmingham and the water that flows from it will have been collected not in the Midlands, but over 70 miles away in Powys, Wales.

Over 320 million litres of water is transported daily by gravity to the UK’s second city via an impressive piece of Victorian engineering, the Elan Valley Aqueduct. Opened in 1904, most of the structure is in remarkably good condition for its age.

However, in three locations – Bleddfa, Nantmel and Knighton – sections of the aqueduct need to be replaced and Severn Trent, the utility company responsible for providing Birmingham’s water, with the help of Fisher German, will bore new tunnels. These will bypass the sections that have maintenance issues so that they can eventually be taken out of use.

The tunneling works at the first site, Bleddfa, have now been completed and the new section of tunnel is in use.  The tunnel boring machine has been refurbished and is due to start tunneling at Nantmel in May.  Works to prepare the final site at Knighton, will commence shortly.

As part of a wider ongoing contract to provide specialist consultancy services to the water company, we have been closely involved in these bypasses. The first stage involved bringing in our planning team, who worked closely with the local planning authority to ensure that these works could be undertaken by Severn Trent using their permitted development rights.

We then worked with Severn Trent to manage issues relating to the land required to launch and recover the tunnel boring machine; this involved liaising with affected landowners and occupiers throughout the project, the service of land entry notices, agreeing accommodation works, and assessing compensation.
Work started on the first bypass in spring 2016 and is expected to finish by the end of 2018.

Contact Evan Hughes if you need further assistance regarding this article.  evan.hughes@fishergerman.co.uk

Over time, Capital Gains Tax has become a significant issue for rural landowners.  Entrepreneurs’ Relief was introduced in 2008, and mitigates Capital Gains Tax upon certain disposals of business assets by an individual.  When applied, the qualifying gains are taxed at ten per cent which is available on up to £10 million of gains for each individual claimant in his/her lifetime. 

How can I claim relief?

Accessing Entrepreneurs’ Relief requires a qualifying business disposal.  The relief may only apply on either; ‘the whole of part of a business disposal’, or ‘the disposal of business assets in the three years following the cessation of a trading business’.  Additionally, the business must have been owned for twelve months prior to disposal or cessation.

Who is eligible?

Entrepreneurs’ Relief is available to sole traders, partners in a business, and shareholders in specific businesses and trustees. 

Sole Traders are eligible for Entrepreneurs’ Relief upon disposal of part or the whole of a business; and post-cessation disposal of business assets.  However, the disposal must include a minimum of one business asset, and the business must have been in ownership of the sole trader for a minimum of twelve months prior to the disposal or cessation. 

Retirement from a partnership qualifies as the disposal of or cessation of a business.  Entrepreneurs’ Relief will be available where the disposal of an interest in a partnership is linked to a disposal of an asset such as land. 

A shareholder must have at least five per cent of the shares and the voting rights to claim Entrepreneurs’ Relief, or they must be an officer or employee of the company for a minimum of twelve months prior to the disposal.  Furthermore, the company must be a trading company.

Trustees do not have an entitlement to Entrepreneur’s Relief in respect of trust gains.  The trusts are only entitled to the relief if the beneficiaries are entitled in their own right.  Beneficiaries must be involved in the business and cease to be within the business; the retirement from the business will qualify as a cessation even in the event that the partnership continues trade.  Any sales of assets within three years of the cessation will qualify for Entrepreneurs’ Relief.     

To fully assess your entitlement to this relief based on your own specific circulstances, you should seek further advice from your  accountant. For assistance with valuation of your business assets please contact our regional valuers:….

charles.meynell@fishergerman.co.uk  

edward.clark@fishergerman.co.uk

hugh.maxfield@fishergerman.co.uk

With all the uncertainty in the farming world at the moment and the turbulent milk price within the dairy industry it has been a refreshing change and a pleasure to work with a long-standing Estate Client and their tenant in expanding the business enterprise on one of their farms.

The tenant, whom came to the Estate ten years ago with just 85 cows and whom has since built this up to 500 cows, approached the Estate last year with a desire to increase to circa 1000 cows.  To do so there would need to be considerable investment from both landlord and tenant.  The Estate have always been keen to work with their farming tenants and hence, we started looking at proposals to progress the ideas. 

The expansion plans incorporated a new 5,200 sq ft livestock shed, an extension to the dairy to enable additional bulk tanks to be housed, a new access drive to replace the rather difficult existing access and the relocation and enlargement of the slurry lagoon up to 8 million gallons.  The tenant also wanted to install a new 52-point rotary parlour.  We looked at the various costs, how the landlord and tenant would work together and ultimately whether it was feasible.

Both parties agreed to move forward and hence the next matter was to apply for planning permission.  This was a complex project given the different elements to the expansion, and made more delicate by the fact that the site was located within a Site of Scientific Interest (SSSI), a flood zone and located over a principal aquifer. 

We also needed to allow for the redirection of a public footpath and allow for extensive landscape screening. We and the Estate carried out a local public consultation before submitting the planning application to enable us to address public concern over the project. Given the sensitivities of the site we required various extensive surveys including ecology, which allowed for great crested newts, bats, hedgerows and pond scoping, along with tree surveys and ground investigation surveys for the soil type in regards to the lagoon.

We worked closely with the local authority of Cheshire West and Chester Council, and drew on the expertise of external consultants for the ecology and investigations in relation to the drainage and lagoon storage.  Using our building surveying department, we were able to draw up the plans and are currently overseeing the health and safety of the project.

  
It took some time to satisfy the requirements of the planning department and the Environment Agency but we managed to successfully obtain conditional planning permission in December 2016.  Planning conditions were fairly standard and to be expected and have subsequently been discharged.  Work is pleasingly now well underway.  A new Farm Business Tenancy has been agreed for 25 years, which will see the tenant through to retirement.          

                                                                                   
The project has certainly been an interesting one and has drawn on many elements of expertise including tenancy matters, planning as well as future tax planning.  It is an excellent example of the client, tenant and agent working together.  The future is bright for the farm and we look forward to seeing the project be completed.

Planning application link. https://pa.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=OALZHATELE300

Should you have any queries or wish to discuss similar project please contact Rachel Kirk MRICS FAAV in our Chester office, rachel.kirk@fishergerman.co.uk, 01244 409678.