Plans to allow a change to delivery times at a chicken farm near Llanfair Caereinion have been delayed to allow investigations to continue.
Councillor Gareth Jones, Powys Council's independent member for Llanfair, had submitted a bid to the authority to allow him to vary the times at which he can receive and send out deliveries from his chicken farm at Rhiw Hiraeth Isaf.
The farm, he says, is far enough from neighbours that the conditions – imposed when he received permission to double the size of the operation to 32,000 birds in August last year.
The application came before the planning committee because it was made by a councillor, and now it must come back again to allow members to make further inquiries – partly because the application only related to half of the farm.
Last minute updates to the planning officers report also revealed there had been an objection on the grounds of noise disturbance.
Planning officer Rhys Evans said: “Given the distance to the properties it is not considered that removing the condition would cause an adverse impact.
“In the original application, environmental health were consulted and did not request that condition. It is therefore considered that it’s unnecessary in this instance.”
Mr Evans said the condition was attached to the first poultry unit, but this application was to take the condition off the new, second building.
Cllr Lewis added: “It’s a ridiculous situation taking it off one and not the other.”
“It’s either both or neither, that’s the way I see it.”
With other councillors pointing out the lack of logic with the application, the meeting was adjourned to allow officers to look back on the conditions put on the first planning approval back in 2017.
Councillor Roger Williams (Felinfach – Liberal Democrat) told the meeting he believes that too many conditions put on planning approvals are being dropped using the non-material amendment process.
The deferral was agreed unanimously by councillors, and the application will return to the committee at a future date.
Earlier in the meeting, Cllr Jones had an application to confirm that he had discharged several conditions in relation to the second chicken farm unit, approved by the committee.
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