Agenda item

To consider a report of the Chief Planning Officer on an application for alterations and extension to form offices and A3/A4 bar restaurant development and erection of a 5 storey office block with basement car parking and public landscaped area, together with a Conservation Area application for demolition of the Mission Hut and 28 The Calls

(report attached)

  Further to minute 6 of the Plans Panel City Centre meeting held on 18^th June 2009 where Members considered a position statement for a mixed use development, car parking and public landscaped area at 14-28 The Calls and associated Conservation Area application for the demolition of the Mission Hut and 28 The Calls, the Panel considered the formal application

  Plans, photographs and graphics were displayed at the meeting

  Members were informed that the applicant had submitted a letter after the agenda had been despatched raising issues about the viability of the S106 contribution.  As a result Officers would need to review a financial viability statement submitted by the applicant so Panel would be unable to determine the application at the meeting.  However Members’ views were sought on the revisions which had been made to the scheme since it was last presented in June

  For the purposes of identification of the two buildings, these would be referred to by their new names of the Warehouse Hill building and the Atkinson building

  The revisions to the scheme were outlined and comprised:

·  alteration of the form and extent of the overhang on the Warehouse Hill building and removal of the columns which would lead to more open views of the River Aire from The Calls

·  amendments to the entrance to the Warehouse Hill building to create an improved relationship and connection with The Calls

·  introduction of a stone plinth to the Warehouse Hill building which would create a strong base to the building, provide vertical emphasis and visually link the building with the riverside walkway

·  reorganisation of windows to provide a vertical emphasis to the Warehouse Hill building facing the river

·  clearer definition of the roof form which would be expressed by a floating façade of copper

·  improved relationship to the residential units at 32 The Calls and the creation of a wider public route

·  improvements to the visual link from the ‘contemplative space’, so reducing the possible risk of anti-social behaviour

·  increased openness of the public space through remodelling the space within the Atkinson building

Officers reported that following these revisions, Leeds Civic Trust now

supported the scheme but had raised minor concerns regarding:

·  the importance of the detailing of the junctions from the stone plinth to the brickwork above it

·  the need for increased greenery within the scheme

·  that no external plant should be sited on the roof of the buildings

Leeds Civic Trust had also requested that every effort should be made

to link the site across to 32 The Calls, but accepted that this area was in a different ownership

  Receipt of a letter of objection was reported which raised concerns as to how the application had been dealt with and the impact of the A3/A4 uses on nearby residents’ amenity

  Members were of the view that the current scheme was much improved on the previous one and commented on the following matters:

·  the irregular aligned windows on the Warehouse Hill building and whether this detracted from the elegance of the building

·  that the side elevation of the Warehouse Hill building was uninteresting and whether this could be enlivened

·  the use of blue brick, particularly on the Atkinson Building with concerns this was too harsh in this location

·  whether the blue brick would be in a plain or textured finish

·  the importance of the detailed setting of the stone plinth in the context of the overall design

·  concerns about the accessibility of the site for people with disabilities

·  concerns that only 3 disabled car parking spaces were being provided

·  the impact of the scheme on the residential units at 32 The Calls and the need for Environmental Health Officers’ views to be obtained in respect of possible noise and odour issues associated with the proposed A3/A4 use

·  concerns about flooding, particularly to the bar/restaurant uses

·  that in the past, slopes had been introduced into the area and the hope that these remained to assist with disabled access

·  that railings should be provided along the riverside and that these should be elegant in design

·  that possible hours of use of the restaurant/bar should be restricted to 1.00am, with no outside use after 10.30pm

·  that the cast iron ‘Warehouse Hill’ plate on the site should be retrieved and appropriately re-sited

Officers provided the following responses:

·  that the window patterns could be considered further.  The Civic Architect, Mr Thorp, stated that the blue brick of the Atkinson building was picked up in the projection on the Warehouse Hill building and if this material was amended then the relationship between the two buildings would require further consideration

·  that a lift and ramp were provided for disabled access, although further clarification would be sought on whether the lift would provide access to the riverside level

·  that the number of disabled parking spaces would be reviewed

·  that Environmental Health Officers had been consulted on the proposals and recommended conditions requiring acoustic attenuation measures to the A3/4 use and restricted hours of use in the interest of residential amenity.  Whilst noting Members’ concerns on this matter, Officers stated that the UDP (Review) 2006 supported leisure uses in this area and for them to spill out beyond the buildings

·  that the scheme had been designed to a 1:200 year flood level with the car park being designed to prevent water ingress and the retail units being located at a higher level

·  that a design guide now existed for railings along the river and that the design of any railings would be in accordance with that document

RESOLVED -  To note the comments now made and that the Chief

Planning Officer be asked to submit a further report in due course for determination of the application which  also provided details on the viability of the public transport contributions and addressed design issues of rhythm, proportion and materiality; the outlook from 32 The Calls; comments from Licensing and Environmental Health Officers, confirmation that the level of disabled parking was in accordance with the UDP (Review) 2006; flood risk and the provision and design of railings along the riverside