Flats plan approved for town centre site

THE FIRST AND SECOND FLOORS OF THE GRADE-II LISTED BUILDING WILL BE FLATS

THE former home of a Burton estate agents is to be transformed after new plans were approved.

The Grade II listed building, on the corner of Lichfield Street and New Street, in the town centre, will see its first and second floors converted into six flats, and its shop front altered to make way for a ground floor access to the accommodation.

The ground floor of the building, which was the home of Scargill and Mann until the firm recently moved to Eastgate Business Centre, in Eastern Avenue, Stretton, is up to let for £20,000 a year. A marketing report says it is suitable for retail, leisure, restaurant use, subject to planning.

However, plans are already in motion for its first and second floors, and now an application has been approved by East Staffordshire Borough Council.

The plans submitted by Booth Property Limited include converting the upper two floors to form six apartments, installation of windows on the first and second floor on the south and west elevation, installation of roof light on to the south elevation, and alterations to the ground floor access and shop front.

A report submitted alongside the application said: “The housing mix in Burton currently provides limited choice to meet the aspirations of managers, senior officials and professionals. The council wants to attract employees to live in Burton to avoid unsustainable commuting and to contribute to the town’s economic prosperity.

“The ambition is therefore to have high-value-added employment and housing choice in Burton to attract this specific group.”

The report also admitted there would be no parking provision for the flats.

It said: “The train station is a 15-minute walk. New Street itself is the town’s principal bus departure location. For residents of the proposed development, car ownership is unnecessary. There is no car parking associated with the development, however there are opportunities for on-street and private parking nearby.

“The building was originally built as residential accommodation, and the proposed use (albeit subdivided into apartments) is more in keeping with its original use.”

The ambition is therefore to have high-value-added employment and housing choice in Burton to attract this specific group.