PFS - ancillary vs convenience retail - Public forum - Planning Advisory Service (PAS)
PFS - ancillary vs convenience retail
We have an application for a PFS (petrol filling station) - the PFS building measures approx 300sqm, making it CIL liable.
The developer proposes to use the PFS to sell convenience goods – including groceries and household cleaning products. The developer reasons that the retail element is ancillary to the PFS. As a sui-generis, the PFS would not be chargeable under our schedule.
However, the floorspace of the sales area proposed is currently about two thirds the floorspace of the unit and so we reason that this stops being ancillary, and should instead be classed as convenience retail which incurs a charge.
Has anyone else experienced trying to differentiate between PFS ancillary (sui-gen) and convenience (A1)? Did you make any decisions as to the proportion or amount of retail floorspace allowed in a PFS before it stops being ancillary and becomes convenience? Did you make any decisions on which parts of the building then serve each type – eg does a chiller room serve the convenience retail element or the PFS element?
THANKS.
Javaid Ashraf, modified 8 Years ago.
RE: PFS - ancillary vs convenience retail
New Member Posts: 6 Join Date: 17/10/14 Recent PostsIt is worth considering the use as well as floorspace.
If the customers of the retail element are mainly due to them using the PFS services, then I think that would be ancillary use, but if the majority of customers were just using the retail element and not the PFS, you could argue that the PFS is ancillary and not the retail.
300sqm for a retail element of a PFS does seem quite large and it may be that it is a retail unit but just so happens to be based on a PFS site with PFS facilities.
It might not be so straightforward to prove the main use of, unless you go on site or have other confirmation of its customer base.
If it was treated as Sui-Generis, I would treat it as such for the purpose of CIL, depending on your charging schedule irrespective of floorspace.
The proposal is still in its early stages and we haven't been provided with information on how they anticipate their customer base to formed- ie whether more will based around the PFS or the convenience. Ideally, the developer needs to evidence this, but in the absence of any information we're wondering whether we can assume that a proportion of the net sales area - say one third - is assigned to ancillary PFS and the remainder is the convenience. It's likely that conditions will also be placed on the use of the unit.
Javaid Ashraf, modified 8 Years ago.
RE: PFS - ancillary vs convenience retail
New Member Posts: 6 Join Date: 17/10/14 Recent PostsI think you could do that subject to Tonys comments which I agree with negotiating a change to the description to a mixed use showing the split between the types of use, which could then be used as a basis for floorspace apportionment.
Hope that helps.