Student flats bid for city building
New plans for a student accommodation development in Sunderland city centre have been submitted to council development chiefs.
Sunderland City Council’s planning department has received an application for the Furniture Lounge building at 61-63 Fawcett Street, which sits near the historic Elephant Tea Rooms.
The planning bid is seeking permission to provide “improved ground floor retail units” and to convert the building’ s vacant upper floors into student accommodation.
Plans have been submitted with supporting documents providing details of the development, which is expected to deliver44one-bedroomstudio apartments and “associated meeting and leisure facilities”.
This includes a gym, games room, group study room, laundryfacilities and more, with extension works also planned to the building’s rear boundary on Station Street as part of the development.
A supporting statement submitted to council officials adds: “The proposed scheme would be a highly desirable offering to any investor and [would] help support the huge demand for student accommodation within Sunderland.
“This development would also align with Sunderland City Council’s goal of increasing footfall of people living within the city and [would] raise the quality of housing offering to students which may otherwise consider locations such as Newcastle and Jesmond”.
As the site is located within the Sunniside Conservation Area and near listed buildings, a heritage statement was also submitted with the plans.
It was noted that a “tall traditionally designed timber shop front incorporating the new entrance to the proposed upper floor student accommodation” would be provided.
Those behind the scheme said the design would meet requirements of the conservation area and “compliment the historic character of the building’s upper floors”.
The proposed rear extension is also expected to be set back to reduce impacts on the Grade II-listed Elephant Tea Rooms and would have a “slightly subservient appearance to the listed building”.
The heritage statement adds :“We believe the proposalwill have no adverse effect on the area’s significant heritage asset, in fact once completed it will only be a positive contribution to the conservation area and preserve it in helping continue the revitalisation and regeneration of the area”.