Historic Buildings Register: Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St Saviour.

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A decision made (01/12/2006) regarding Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St. Saviour.

Subject:	Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St Saviour
Decision reference:	MD-PE-2006-0221	Exempt clause(s):		None
Type of report (oral or written):	Oral and written	Report file ref:		SA0141
Person giving report (if oral): Curator of Historic Buildings: Jersey Heritage Trust
Written report – author: Curator of Historic Buildings: Jersey Heritage Trust
Written Report Title: Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St Saviour
Decision(s): Having regard to all of the evidence and opinion, the Minister for Planning and Environment confirmed the Listing of La Fantaisie, as defined by the description and the plan attached to the report, as a Site of Special Interest under the provisions of Article 51(2)(b) Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002 by virtue of its special architectural and historical interest as described in the second schedule also attached to the report.
Reason(s) for decision: The special interest of La Fantaisie, as defined and assessed relative to the published criteria for selection, justifies its inclusion on the List of Sites of Special Interest in accordance with the provisions and purposes of the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002.
Action required:  Update the Register  Notify the land owner of the Minister’s decision
Signature: (Minister/ Assistant Minister)			Date of Decision: 1 December 2006

Historic Buildings Register: Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St Saviour.

		Item No:
		Date:

PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT

Review of La Fantaisie, Belvedere Hill, St Saviour

Purpose of the Report

The purpose of this report is for the Minister to confirm the Listing of La Fantaisie under the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002 as a Site of Special Interest, having regard to the States strategic objective ‘to protect the best of the Island’s architectural heritage’ and a key objective of the Island Plan 2002 to protect and promote Jersey’s built, cultural and archaeological heritage.

Background

This report has been prepared by the Jersey Heritage Trust as part of its responsibility under a Service Level Agreement to provide reports and recommendations to the Minister for Planning and Environment on the registration of buildings and sites. It incorporates the views of the Ministerial Registration and Listing Advisory Group (MRLAG) - a group established to provide independent, expert advice on matters relating to the protection of buildings and sites of cultural interest.

The following is a brief chronology of events since the designation of La Fantaisie as a Site of Special Interest in 2004:

 La Fantaisie was designated as a Site of Special Interest on 20 May 2004;

 An appeal against this designation was lodged on 19 July 2004 citing various grounds including that the Order and Notice of Intention was incorrectly served, that the Environment and Public Services Committee had failed to consult those with special knowledge, and that the cottage and grounds have no particular architectural or historic merit;

 After taking legal advice, it was agreed that the appeal would be stayed and that the Committee would serve a new notice (this was issued 31 August 2004), allowing a period for representations sufficient to allow Merton/Seymours to obtain expert evidence (this was extended to 17 December 2004);

 A report by Dr Mervyn Miller on behalf of Merton/Seymour was provided in December 2004;

 The Jersey Heritage Advisory Panel discussed Dr Miller’s report on 14 February 2005. Members agreed that it was not persuasive in putting a case against the SSI designation and questioned how the conclusion reached in Dr Miller’s report (that SSI is not justified) is supported by the evidence contained in the report itself. It was agreed that the Panel should have one further discussion with the plans of the house and site, to ensure that there has been no misunderstanding of Dr Miller’s report;

· The JHAP visited La Fantaisie on 23 March 2005 and concluded that Dr Miller's report raised some unanswered questions about the evolution of the building and that a more detailed examination of the fabric was needed to clarify the sequence of building alteration. The Committee negotiated an extension of time to employ its own expert to assess Dr Miller's findings;

 The Paul Drury Partnership (on behalf of EPSC) provided a report on La Fantaisie in July 2005 supporting the SSI designation;

· In order to attempt to resolve areas of uncertainty, Paul Drury and Dr Mervyn Miller made a joint inspection of La Fantaisie on 15 May 2006 and a joint statement identifying areas of agreement and disagreement between Miller and Drury was issued soon after;

 In October 2006, the Planning and Environment Department requested that the Jersey Heritage Trust and the Ministerial Registration and Listing Advisory Group review the proposal to designate the building and all of the associated evidence and to make a recommendation to the Minister as to whether SSI designation of La Fantaisie should be maintained under the new Planning Law.

Discussion

Members of MRLAG carried out a detailed external and internal inspection of La Fantaisie at its meeting on 13 November 2006, and assessed the site in light of the various reports prepared by Dr Mervyn Miller and The Paul Drury Partnership.

Members unanimously agreed with the conclusions reached by The Paul Drury Partnership, that La Fantaisie is the most developed and best preserved example of the Cottage Ornée style in Jersey and retains sufficient interest to justify Listing as a Site of Special Interest.

It is considered that on the basis of all the evidence, the Listing of La Fantaisie as a Site of Special Interest is in accordance with Article 51 of the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002 and with the published criteria for the selection of SSIs.

Recommendation

On the basis of the above, and with reference to the supporting papers attached, it is recommended that the Minister confirm the Listing of La Fantaisie, as defined by the attached description and on the attached plan, as a Site of Special Interest under the provisions of Article 51(2)(b) Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002 by virtue of it’s special architectural and historical interest as described in the attached second schedule.

Reason(s) for Decision

The special interest of La Fantaisie, as defined and assessed relative to the published criteria for selection, justifies its inclusion on the List of Sites of Special Interest in accordance with the provisions and purposes of the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law 2002.

Action Required

 Update the Register

 Notify the land owner of the Minister’s decision

Written by:	Roger Hills Curator of Historic Buildings - Jersey Heritage Trust

Approved by:	Janet Dore Principal Historic Buildings Advisor

Endorsed by:	Kevin Pilley Assistant Director

Attachments:

· Plan and boundary description of Site of Special Interest

· Second schedule - expanded description of architectural and historical interest

· Addendum to an assessment of La Fantaisie by The Paul Drury Partnership, 10 July 2006

· Addendum by Dr Mervyn Miller, 7 July 2006

· La Fantaisie – agreed note of joint site inspection by Paul Drury, 9 June 2006

· La Fantaisie – agreed note of joint site inspection by Dr Mervyn Miller, 17 May 2006

· La Fantaisie – an assessment of the historic building by The Paul Drury Partnership, July 2005

· La Fantaisie – architectural and historical building assessment by Dr Mervyn Miller, December 2004

16 November 2006

SA0141