Planning drawings showing the extended premises in Ballyclare.
A planning application for an extension at Ballyclare Group Practice was approved by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council’s Planning Committee at a meeting, in Mossley Mill, on Monday evening.
Planning officer Alicia Leathem told the committee the majority of the extension will be first floor accommodation at the George Avenue facility for a multi-disciplinary team with parking spaces retained underneath.
She said the proposal is considered “acceptable in principle and will not adversely impact the appearance or character of the area”.
She indicated there are 30 existing parking spaces but there is a requirement for 68. Ballyclare High School is opposite the premises.
The officer went on to say there were 13 letters of objection highlighting issues including traffic and parking. There were two letters of support underlining need for the community facility.
“Given the benefit to the local community, the shortfall of parking is considered acceptable,” she explained.
Objector Brian Higginson said that members of staff park their cars in the residential area adding that “it does cause a few issues”.
“The issues being that residents can’t park in front of their own houses. Some people have put up bollards to stop parking, I have an off-road parking space. Sometimes I come home to find I can’t get in or cars have blocked me in.”
Mr Higginson went on to say that carers visiting pensioners in the area can have “great difficulty” in finding parking spaces. He suggested the medical centre will be “adding to the problem by bringing in more staff”.
Threemilewater DUP Councillor Sam Flanagan asked how residents would describe the parking situation in Ballyclare.
He was told it is “over-capacity when it comes to traffic and when it comes to parking” and it was “not just the High School pupils trying to park around the health centre”.
Dr Michael Rodgers, of Ballyclare Group Practice, said the practice has approximately 15,000 patients and seven GP partners plus two salaried GPs. He added that it is also a training practice and provides Northern Health and Social Care Trust services and is a district nursing hub.
“Due to changes in the health service in Northern Ireland, there is an opportunity for multi-disciplinary teams to become involved,” he added. These include mental health workers and social workers.
He went on to say the proposal is a “means of improving services available to the existing population”.
He continued that he “very much understands the difficulty of access” at George Avenue at certain times of the day.
“I would have to plan when to go to do a house call. I would ask practice staff to be respectful about where they could park and would be very upset if they annoyed anyone over blocking someone’s access.”
Macedon Ulster Unionist Cllr Robert Foster commented: “It is a two-way street. It should be a one-way street. This is about the level of access and egress.”
Dr Rodgers stated: “If Ballyclare Group Practice was being built today, I am quite convinced that the number of parking spaces would not be passed. That is the situation we find ourselves in.”
He added that the practice has “explored other options in the past” including a new town centre facility but due to lack of funding from the Department of Health, he said, “that had to be pulled”.
“If we do not do something to develop the practice, in the future, we will have difficulty in recruiting new GPs. Young GPs will not want to work in a practice that does not have access to additional services.”
Cllr Foster responded: “The services you are providing are for people who will drive there or who are getting dropped off. You are basically running a health centre as opposed to a group practice but access to them is greatly restricted by your site.”
Macedon Alliance Cllr Billy Webb MBE remarked: “It is a real pleasure to be in the same room as a GP,” before asking about staff parking “off-site.”
Dr Rodgers asked if there could be “some co-operation with the council in relation to that”.
Cllr Flanagan asked if a facility could be located elsewhere. He was told that the purpose of multi-disciplinary care was to “wrap around the practice”.
Barry Diamond, head of planning, indicated that the committee would have to consider if the “public benefit outweighs the public nuisance caused by the lack of parking frustration of residents”.
Cllr Foster commented: “The benefit is greatly diluted if you can’t access the service.”
Glengormley DUP Cllr Alison Bennington proposed accepting the recommendation to approve the application, seconded by Glengormley Sinn Fein Cllr Rosie Kinnear.
Planning permission was granted following a vote in which six councillors were in favour with four against.