ReGlasgow

DENSITY Of High-Rise Residential Plan For Listed Building Site Is ‘Extremely Excessive’

3 November, 2021 | Listed / Historic Buildings

CITY planners are opposed to a major build-to-rent and mixed-use development proposed for Glasgow City Centre.

Brickland Ltd wants to build 182 one, two and three-bedroom apartments and duplexes at 64 to 72 Waterloo Street.

Councillors on Glasgow’s planning committee have decided to hold a hearing into the application, allowing those who support or oppose to state their case.

A high-rise, new-build element would occupy the existing footprint of 70-72 Waterloo Street as well as the rear of the site.

The proposals also include restoring and re-purposing parts of the neighbouring B-listed Distillers’ House which has been unoccupied and in a state of deterioration for some time.

The building was badly damaged in a fire in the 1940s, which resulted in the original dome and roof features being removed. As part of the redevelopment, these features would be reinstated, alongside stonework repairs.

In addition to new homes, there would be commercial and residential amenity uses.

Planning officials are recommending refusal. Their report states: “Whilst planning permission has been approved for redevelopment of this site to include a tall building, the current proposals are consider to be excessive in scale to the point where they would unacceptably impact on the setting of the Glasgow Central Conservation Area

“The resultant density of 1,338 residential units per hectare is also considered to be extremely excessive.”

They say the proposed replacement building would result in “an unsympathetic and over-dominant development”, out of scale with the surrounding category A and B-listed buildings.

They argue that formation of a mezzanine level within the third floor of 64 Waterloo Street, “would cut across upper levels of windows and would detrimentally impact on the special interest and appearance of the category B-listed building”.

A further reason to refuse would be a number of flats they consider to be of poor aspect with poor light levels.

Planning permission was given in 2018 for a 14-storey grade-A office block at the site.

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