The redevelopment of Bath Quays North moves a step nearer to actually getting underway as outline planning consent is given by Bath & North East Somerset Council.
The site, near Churchill Bridge, is a major part of the Bath Quays redevelopment which spans both sides of the River Avon in the centre of Bath. It is the Council’s flagship regeneration project to create a new and vibrant quarter for Bath’s flourishing businesses in the heart of the city and is the most significant development opportunity in a generation.
The Bath Quays North site will deliver in the region of 20,000 sqm of new Grade A office space, creating up to 1,900 new jobs, a minimum of 70 new homes and a new, modern basement car park.
Cllr Paul Myers (Conservative, Midsomer Norton Redfield), Cabinet Member for Economic & Community Regeneration, said: “Outline planning at Bath Quays North is a hugely significant step forward for Bath. Bath Quays will meet the needs of Bath’s successful local business community who wish to expand, as well as encourage others to move to the area, bringing with them higher-wage jobs, investment and economic growth.
The development will enhance the city’s and region’s reputation as a home for business and will enable the provision of more opportunities for our residents and young people, especially in Bath’s successful high tech, creative, financial and professional sectors.
Bath Quays aims to enrich life, work, leisure, our local economy and our world-renowned city”.
In addition to offices, the development will create a vibrant destination for all to enjoy with homes and attractive waterfront spaces for the community. The proposed layout of the site reinstates the historic street pattern that was destroyed with the construction of the multi-storey carpark and reconnects the river to the city centre with high quality pedestrianised squares and shared cycle routes. Waterfront cafes and restaurants will also help create a lively location accessible to all. The recently completed south-facing riverside park was the first step to improve this area of the city.
Homes England have committed grant support through the recently announced Accelerated Construction Programme, to accelerate the delivery of new homes within Bath Quays and ensure affordable housing is part of a mix of accommodation aimed towards young local workers.
Cllr Myers added: “I welcome Homes England’s support that will allow Bath & North East Somerset Council to deliver affordable homes and employment space to benefit residents”.
Stephen Kinsella, Executive Director for Land at Homes England, said: “We’re supporting ambitious local authorities to develop their land more quickly to get more homes built for local people. Meeting the demand for housing requires different approaches and our funding will see local partners using new technologies.”
The outline planning consent will ensure a detailed design comes forward that is befitting a UNESCO World Heritage City and is of exceptional design quality.
The Council is in the process of selecting a development partner for the Bath Quays North scheme. An announcement on the successful partner will be made early next year and construction is likely to commence in early 2020.
Bath Quays is being developed by Bath & North East Somerset Council working in partnership with and part-funded by the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership and administered by the West of England Combined Authority.
For further information about the Bath Quays development visit: www.bathquays.co.uk
The Bath Quays project will contribute to the Council’s commitment to deliver up to 3,500 new homes, 9,000 new jobs and will also help diversify the authority’s estate for the benefit of future generations. It will also increase the amount of revenue the Council receives in rent and business rates income and, in line with the Council’s Financial Plan, this income will be earmarked to protect frontline services, including the provision of adult social care, children’s services and environmental services.
Homes England brings together land, money, expertise, and planning and compulsory purchase powers, with a clear remit to facilitate delivery of sufficient new homes, where they are most needed, to deliver a sustained improvement in affordability.
Homes England is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
Homes England are helping local authorities to speed up housing delivery through a new £450 million Accelerated Construction Programme, announced by the Ministry for Housing and Communities in July.
The programme will support local authorities to get housing schemes built more quickly, encourage innovative construction methods and a wider range of builders, in particular small and medium sized companies that are often locally-based.
When you overlay the current map on top of this you get a much clearer picture of what is going to change. As far as I can discern the site in question basically involves the current Avon Street carparks (surface and multistorey) and the nearby coach park. I doubt if there will be many who would shed a tear for those as long as there is a plan to cope with this process of change. I think that the current coach park is being relieved by a site at Odd Down P&R. The current car park can accommodate 628 vehicles and will ultimately be replaced by a ‘new, modern basement car park’. During the work most of the current car park will disappear, and will be replaced by a smaller one, surely?
If the plan is to displace the current parking arrangements to new locations outside the city and to provide high speed, comfortable links to the site then fantastic. If not, then I’d like to understand how this will fit in with the long term aspirations to pedestrianise the city centre.
Let’s hope it will “blend effortlessly into the cityscape” as they claimed for the recent monstrosities on the Western Riverside development, which completely failed.