Revised plans for student development following refusal

Revised plans have been lodged for a York student accommodation development after an application was refused earlier this year.Gregory Property Group has submitted a full planning application to City of York Council for development on land adjacent to Foss Islands Road.The site currently comprises four buildings in use as a car rental centre, tyre depot, offices and vehicle servicing facility. Three of the buildings date back to the site’s former use as the end of the line station for the Foss Islands Branch railway line, closed in 1989.Planning permission is sought for the demolition of the existing buildings and construction of a purpose-built student housing scheme.A total of 133 studios and two one-bed apartments are proposed, seven of which are accessible.Communal facilities would be provided on the ground floor, including a gym, social area and study space.A previous application was refused by the council’s Planning Committee A in July 2023, despite an officer’s report recommending approval. Concerns were raised over the loss of the land for employment use and accessibility.The number of studios has been reduced by one in the new application to accommodate a request from members for a common room to be provided on each floor of the building. An undercroft parking area is now also proposed to increase the number of accessible car parking spaces.A planning statement submitted as part of the application said: “As a gap in the otherwise built-up street frontage, the application site does not contribute positively to the local townscape and the retained buildings are in a poor state of repair. The proposal offers an opportunity to enhance the existing street scene and the new development is well-related to the properties on either side.”It added: “The prospect of bringing the site forward for future office or industrial development has been dismissed by an independent local agent on viability grounds and this was reflected in the proposals brought forward by competing developers during the direct marketing exercise carried out in 2020.”