Plans for new six-storey student block with riverside terrace in Coventry

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Plans for new six-storey student block with riverside terrace in Coventry

Postby dutchman » Wed Jun 07, 2023 9:17 pm

A different scheme was refused last year

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Plans for a 130-bed student block by the River Sherbourne in Coventry have gone to the council for approval. The accommodation, six storeys high at its tallest point, would replace an old industrial unit used by Mills Forgings on Charterhouse Road.

It would have a courtyard, gym, lounge, riverside terrace and balconies, parking for eight cars and long-term cycle storage for 80 bikes.

The building would have sustainability features such as heat pumps, solar thermal panels and would use commercial bio-mass to power its electricity and heating.

Floor plans show the 130 studios it provides would range in size from 16 to 20 metres squared. Three of these rooms would be wheelchair accessible.

The scheme is a re-submission of an application that was turned down by Coventry council last year, according to a planning statement.

Applicant SAMA investments wanted to put up a 158-bed student block, designed by different architects to those behind the new plans.

But their bid was rejected by the council due to a lack of car parking and for failing to provide a "high-quality residential environment" for inhabitants.

The council also said the building would negatively affect nearby houses on the road, and didn't have any developer contributions to local services.

Planning agents say the new scheme has tackled these concerns by reducing the scale of the buildings and adding more amenity space. The new plans were validated last month and expire in August.

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Re: Plans for new six-storey student block with riverside terrace in Coventry

Postby dutchman » Mon Oct 02, 2023 8:41 pm

Coventry student accommodation faces opposition as locals say it's too tall

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A scheme to build over 100 student flats in Coventry will be decided on by councillors this week after receiving opposition from people and community groups in the city. People writing to the city council say the building is too tall and "oppressive" - and local groups fear it could create a "canyon effect" near the River Sherbourne.

But Coventry council officers say the scheme should go ahead as the building is "well-proportioned" and will not negatively impact neighbours or the riverside. Plans for the 130-bed student block on the Mills Forgings site were sent to the council earlier this year after a previous scheme was rejected for being "too intensive" last year.

The project has been met with 11 letters of objection, with Historic Coventry and the Coventry Society also unhappy with the proposals. Those writing in say they want the building to be limited to four storeys high, not six at its highest point as planned, according to a report for the meeting next week.

Their objections include claims the "building is oppressive/an intensive overdevelopment" that will harm neighbouring houses and the river view. Other concerns include anti-social behaviour, road safety, the design and the loss of the Mills Forgings business.

Historic Coventry believe it is too tall and too close to the river - and want the block moved back and limited to four storeys in height, the report adds. This will affect ecology, put the river/bank in shade and create "a canyon effect that is not attractive for the proposed riverside walk," they say.

The Coventry Society are also against the application, describing the six-storey part as "intrusive" and "an overdevelopment." "It will confine the River Sherbourne into a development canyon," a summary of their response read.

They also claim the plans will "do nothing to improve the character of the river" or its amenity value to Coventry residents, as they say it will stop future public access to this part.

The company that Mills Forgings is part of, Kimber Mills International, are currently moving their UK operations to Sandwell. If the scheme goes ahead, developers will have to pay over £100,000 towards local health services and £40,000 for a new zebra crossing on Gulson Road.

The decision will come at a meeting of the council's Planning Committee in the council house next Thursday (5 October) from 2pm.

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Re: Plans for new six-storey student block with riverside terrace in Coventry

Postby dutchman » Tue Oct 10, 2023 10:15 am

New Coventry riverside student block approved as city universities are still 'growing'

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A new 130-bed student block will be built by the river Sherbourne in Coventry after a vote by councillors. The scheme went to the council's planning committee after locals and community groups objected on the grounds it would be too tall.

But before work starts, details of the plans will be checked by council officers and the committee chair after locals and councillors raised fire safety concerns. Councillors heard a range of concerns from the owners of neighbouring Willowbank Mews who were represented by a speaker.

These included how close windows would be to the homes and office, sparking privacy and fire concerns. "It's proposed to have three windows built right on the boundary line adjacent to windows at 16 Willowbank Mews whereby someone can open a window, put their hand over the boundary and touch [the owner's] building," they claimed.

"As well as loss of privacy, fire could spread in these proposed rooms from the fridge and cooker, which would be right next to the bed, which is right next to the window, which is right on the site boundary." But a representative for the applicant SAMA investments said at the meeting on Thursday, October 5 that separation distances are in line with design guidelines, and pointed out the scheme had been amended to take into account "all previous reasons for refusal."

They claimed it would deliver "significant benefits" including remediating a contaminated site, a biodiversity net gain of 150% and sustainability considerations. "SAMA investments will continue to work with the local residents including Lettuce Lettings next door, who we've had a number of meetings with and have specifically amended the design already to address all of the points that have been raised," they said.

A Coventry planning officer also said windows next to Willowbank Mews are at 90 degrees, and are therefore an acceptable separation under policy. On fire standards, they said the application had a fire statement and West Midlands Fire service didn't have any objection to the scheme.

Another officer later added fire statements are mostly advisory and these matters are covered by building regulations, not planning policies. The requirements for separation rely on the materials of the building, they added.

A fire statement with the application also said the latest recommendations of building regulations on fire standards would be applied "in full." But other councillors also raised concerns over fire safety, with some unclear on whether sprinklers would be included and wanting certainty on this, despite the developer's representative confirming these are planned.

And while debating the scheme, a councillor pointed out that in recent weeks student blocks had come back to the council asking for a different use. "The simple fact is we've had several places that were student accommodation come back and they wanted to use them for something else," said Labour councillor Catherine Miks.

"What guarantees have we got that, having built this development, this will not turn into something else?" A council planning officer said the use by students would be in place under a Section 106 - and developers would have to apply later for permission to change it.

On the need for student accommodation, another officer told the meeting: "We're in the process of commissioning a study to look at that again at the moment. "But our ongoing discussions with both universities indicate continued growth and continued need for more student accommodation."

Councillors voted the plans through after agreeing elements of the scheme including the planned sprinklers and separation distance would be checked by officers and consulted on with the committee's chair before work starts.

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