Cheltenham Civic Society’s Planning Forum has objected to the plans put forward by Wavensmere Homes for the Black & White site on St Margarets Road.
The Society is calling for the Council to reject the scheme and for the developer to come forward with a plan that reflects the strategic importance of the site’s location and prominence in the centre of Cheltenham and the Central Conservation Area.
“We entirely support the principle of developing housing on this site, which has lain vacant for more than 40 years. But what the town needs on this site is a shining example of urban planning rather than this lacklustre scheme with its poor proportions and cheap detailing. It’s an ‘anywhere, any town’ development that is simply not good enough for Cheltenham,” said CCS Chair, Andrew Booton.
The Society’s Planning Forum suggested that the plans for North Place could have been inspired by the nearby Clarence and Wellington squares by providing civilised living with buildings at least five storeys high. Greater height would also enable the developer to aim for a much higher density than 114 dph (dwellings per hectare). They cited other recent town centre developments such as the Haines & Strange site (165 dph), Montpellier Spa Road (247 dph) and both Priory and Grosvenor House (140 dph).
The Forum is particularly concerned about the heavy, new apartment block sitting alongside one of Cheltenham’s finest terraces, St Margaret’s Terrace. It will, they say, be a ‘monstrous carbuncle’ of a neighbour.
With Cheltenham’s net zero plans in mind, the buildings should have been designed to exceed a 100-year life, with energy performance throughout to achieve EPC level A, the homes to be warmed by a district heating scheme, and solar PV panels to be installed on all roofs (not just the apartments block where the landlord could take the income).
Sustainable transport could also be encouraged through a shared ownership car club, shared EV charging and integration with bus routes. The proposals are dominated by parked and moving vehicles and the insufficient parking is likely to impact on the wider neighbourhood. This could be improved by underground and undercroft parking, as in the award-winning development of Montpellier Gardens and Imperial Square.
The green space in the scheme is likely to need intensive management and upkeep and could be much better and easier to manage if configured around a public square. Many more street trees are needed – as required by government guidance.
The proposed layout also fails to comply with Security by Design principles. These say that only front gardens should face onto footpaths and public open space. As the design may encourage anti-social behaviour and crime, the Planning Forum suggests that the scheme should be reviewed by the Designing Out Crime Officer.
With a greater density, the scheme’s viability would be improved and it would be possible to meet CBC’s minimum threshold of 20% affordable housing – which should be provided across the development and be indistinguishable from the private homes.
“The Wavensmere scheme fails on so many counts,” said Andrew Booton. “So the Planning Committee should have no trouble in rejecting it. Before that, however, the planning officers should be asking the developer to come back with a much-improved solution. They need to be more rigorous at an earlier stage and set greater expectations.
“The developer should also undertake much better consultation next time. The whole town is interested in what gets built on this important site, not just those living in the immediate vicinity. And all the key stakeholder groups should also be involved at an early stage. Had that happened first time around, the issues we have flagged up would have been identified and Wavensmere could have addressed them before they wasted a lot of their own money on the preparation of their planning application.”
The full text of Cheltenham Civic Society’s objection can be viewed and downloaded by clicking here.