Work on a retirement development of 48 flats at a former bank in Bury St Edmunds will start on site as soon as possible.
Churchill Retirement Living was given approval earlier in the year for its scheme at the old Lloyds Bank building in Risbygate Street, and now all the legal agreements are in place work can begin.
The existing building will be demolished to make way for the new flats made up of 32 one-bedroom apartments and 16 two-bedroom apartments.
MORE: Decision to be made on plans for 50 retirement flats in Bury town centreThe original plans were amended to try and address a number of concerns, including from neighbours in Nelson Road who had expressed fears over the scale and height of the building, overlooking and parking.
Following the amended plans in November and December last year, Bury St Edmunds Town Council still maintained its objection on the grounds of poor design and height.
The plans were approved at a West Suffolk Council planning meeting in February subject to a raft of conditions, including a surface water drainage scheme and a programme of archaeological work.
Stuart Goodwill, managing director of Churchill Retirement Living’s in-house planning consultancy, said: “I’d like to thank everyone who has helped towards achieving this very positive result.
“There is a compelling need for older people’s housing in Bury St Edmunds and the surrounding area and our site is in a highly sustainable and accessible location for a new development of this kind, so we believe this decision is good news for the town.
“We worked positively and proactively with the council to deliver a design and proposal that will positively regenerate this highly sustainable under-used site, complement the conservation area and make a positive contribution to the wider area.
“Allowing older people to downsize will also help free up more homes for families and younger people in the local area.”
The new privately-owned flats will provide self-contained accommodation in landscaped grounds, with a communal ‘Owners’ Lounge’, a guest suite, a lodge manager and a 24-hour emergency call alarm service.
The new building will be three-and-a-half storeys where it faces Risbygate Street, reducing to three storeys towards the centre of the site before rising to four storeys at the southern end of the site.
MORE: Work on former post office redevelopment could start next month after funding boostPlanning officers said in their February committee report that the Highway Authority had raised concerns in relation to the number of car parking spaces being provided on site, but it was considered that measures such as the provision of cycle and mobility scooter stores together with the close proximity of the town centre and car parks meant there would not be any significant adverse effects on the local highway network.
There will be 23 parking spaces within the development.
Planning officers added: “On balance it is considered that the proposal meets the economic, social and environmental elements of sustainable development and that the benefits of the scheme outweigh any minor adverse effects identified.”
For more information on the development call 0800 458 1857 or go to the Churchill Retirement Living website here.
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