JV deal signals next phase in regeneration of Oliver Buildings

Plans to redevelop the grade II-listed Oliver Buildings in Barnstaple have moved a step closer with the signing of a joint venture agreement between regeneration specialist Acorn Property Group and Wessex Investors.The JV development proposals will breathe new life into the long-vacant former Shapland & Petter furniture factory bringing homes and commercial space to a key site on the south bank of the River Taw.Together with an adjacent new build development, the regeneration project will create 29, one-, two-, three-bed apartments and two and three-bed duplexes and more than 13,500 sq ft of commercial space on the ground floor.The development plans will go to a design review panel at the North Devon Council on 5 July with a planning application due to follow in the autumn. Barnstaple’s southern bank has been the focus of wider regeneration plans in recent years with the development of an Asda supermarket and a retail park and further housing currently under construction.