Councillors reject Italian chapel car park extension in Orkney after it was built

A retrospective planning application to expand the Italian chapel’s car park has been refused by Orkney Council’s planning committee.

Demand for parking at the WWII chapel has been increasing in recent years.

Owner Tommy Sinclair applied for permission to build a new car park area for coaches back in March 2024 and went ahead with the construction later that year.

However, the application was turned down by the local council’s planning committee on Wednesday.

Councillors followed the recommendation from council planning officers to refuse.

Why did the committee refuse planning permission?

There was no question as to whether new parking has been needed at the Italian chapel.

However, planning officers said permission shouldn’t be given because the full range of options for new parking at the site hadn’t been explored.

The council’s planning manager, Jamie Macvie, said there have been safety concerns in the area as visitor footfall has increased and larger buses use the car park.

However, he said the applicant had not considered all the options for new parking through the planning process before going ahead with their plans.

Mr Macvie said: “Ultimately, there may be no other options but that case hasn’t been made.”

The owner of the Italian chapel in Orkney built the car park two years ago LDRS

He also said, in terms of policy, the view between the chapel and the first Churchill Barrier is “key to the experience of visiting” the site.

So, there was a question of that view being blocked by coaches in the new parking area.

Later in the meeting, Mr Macvie said: “We’re not refusing this because it will never be acceptable.

“But based on what we have, there’s not enough to outweigh the impact on the setting.”

Historic Environment Scotland and the Islands Archaeologist objected saying there is an adverse impact on the chapel’s setting.

They also asked for other options for parking to be explored.

There was one objection to the plans from a member of the public, Leslie Sinclair from Kirkwall.

Mr Sinclair claimed the changes impact the setting and experience at the chapel. He also said there is a lack of adequate amenities and there would be an impact on the Scapa Flow Special Protection Area.

What did councillors have to say?

Councillor David Dawson moved for refusal. He said the applicant had “failed to explore alternative options via a detailed management plan”.

He also said the “sense of place” was “diminished by the proposed development”.

Councillor Duncan Tullock seconded saying it “should be a salutary lesson to applicants to consult with the planning authority before taking action”.

He added: “I sympathise with the fact that the bus parking is required.

“But there are stages you have to go through, and not take the law into your own hands.”

The application was rejected by councillors. LDRS

However, the committee’s final decision was not unanimous.

Councillor James Moar moved for planning approval to be granted.

This was backed by the committee chair Owen Tierney.

However, they were the only two to take this view, and their motion fell at a vote of two votes to eight.

What happens next?

During the committee meeting, before the final decision, Mr Macvie said the refusal to grant planning permission would classify the parking space as “unauthorised”.

However, this wouldn’t mean the new parking space has to be torn up immediately.

Mr Macvie said the “natural course of action” following the refusal would be for the developer to “go away and do the survey work required for what’s needed to manage this visitors”.

This would mean “a better understanding for planning, as the decision maker, to understand where any sort of facility should go in the future”.