Bar and restaurant plan for old building
SCHEME RECOMMENDED BY PLANNING COMMITTEE
YET another landmark building on a famous Newcastle street looks set to be transformed into an upmarket bar and restaurant.
The Grade II listed building on Collingwood Street has been empty since 2013, but developers want to give it a new lease of life as a restaurant and luxury apartments.
A planning application to transform the former Allied Irish Bank building into a restaurant for more than 140 diners and 12 plush flats on the upper floors was submitted to Newcastle City Council in January.
Now officers have recommended that the council’s planning committee approves the proposals, despite objections from nearby residents that it will lead to a loss of privacy.
The 19th-century building was last occupied by Allied Irish Bank until 2013, but it has been vacant ever since and the upper floor office suites have been derelict even longer, having been empty since the late 1990s.
The former banking hall and manager’s office are earmarked for a restaurant and bar area with room for around 146 covers, spread across the ground floor and mezzanine floor, with the manager’s room doubling as a private dining area. The application says up to 43 kitchen and service jobs would be created if the plans went ahead. Works which would need to be carried out include adjustments to the existing mezzanine floor in the banking hall, the incorporation of new stairs, installation of new glazing in the Collingwood Street facade and the removal of an existing entrance lobby at the main entrance door. A planning statement from Newcastle consultancy Lambert Smith Hampton, says: “Our client’s proposals seek to revive the existing building both externally and internally through the provision of a new restaurant on the ground floor and 12 residential dwellings on the upper floors. “The proposed dwellings will be of the upmost design quality reflecting the design quality of the original building. “Careful consideration has been given to the historic features of the listed building as well as the site surroundings and character of the Conservation Area.”
The application drew several objections from residents at the nearby Stamp Exchange building, who said the large communal roof terrace and dormer windows “have the potential for all residents to congregate leading to loss of privacy”.
It will go before Newcastle City Council’s planning committee on Friday.
A report to councillors, which recommends approval of the plans, says, “The principle of bringing a building back into occupation as a mixed use restaurant, bar and residential scheme within the sustainable urban core with good public transport links is considered acceptable.
“It is regrettable that the original windows and other features including cornices and skirting’s will be lost during the refurbishment.
“However, the public benefit of the development has to be carefully weighed against the perceived harm to the character and appearance of the listed building.
“The re-use of the building will provide opportunity to secure the long-term future of the heritage asset and prevent further deterioration.”
The application says up to 43 kitchen and service jobs would be created if the plans went ahead