Apartments plan branded ‘monstrosity’
MORE than 900 new homes have just been approved at Salford council’s planning panel – including blocks of flats which one councillor called a ‘monstrosity.’
John Warmisham – a long-time councillor but newcomer on the panel – said the committee was ‘doing Salford a disservice’ by backing the ‘absolutely awful’ plan for 167 apartments and 11 townhouses on Chapel Street, across from Salford Cathedral.
“Every other major city across Europe and the UK would have a cathedral square. Here we’re just going to build right in front of it with a monstrosity of a building,” he said. “I’m totally against it and think we should go back to the drawing board.”
“It adds nothing to Chapel Street. It’s awful, dire,” he said.
But the planning chair, Coun Ray Mashiter, said that the application was only looking at ‘reserved matters’ – the appearance of and access to the buildings.
The four-block development – which will reach up to seven storeys – meets the council’s long-standing ‘outline plan’ for the area, he said.
“I can’t go back and redraw that outline and it would be unreasonable to refuse anything that meets that,” he added.
Coun Stuart Dickman tried to defer the application on air pollution grounds, but Coun Peter Wheeler pointed out that the panel had already approved a government office block development ‘200 metres away’ earlier in the day.
The other homes plans approved by the panel were: Less controversial was this Salford Quays development, which will see hundreds of apartments built in ‘staggered’ blocks that will reach up to 27 storeys. The three-storey office block that currently stands at the site will be demolished.
Speaking for the applicants, De Trafford, Tom Flanagan said the one to three-bedroom homes would create an ‘inclusive, sustainable community.’
Coun Karen Garrido said she was ‘delighted’ to see roof gardens included in the plans: “We all need a bit of green in our lives.”
The proposal, which had been scaled down from a plan for 500 flats, also includes a £100,000 contribution which will either go towards ‘public realm’ projects or off-site affordable housing. A total of 52 of these homes off Worsley Road North, Walkden, will be ‘affordable.’ Family homes of two, three and four bedrooms will make up much of the development, with 58 apartments.
Some councillors said that they had had a good experience with developers, Countryside, in the past.
Others were unhappy with the design. Coun Karen Garrido said that while the houses ‘look nice,’ the apartments ‘look like a square box.’