Splott apartment scheme set for approval

Plans to build 30 apartments on the College Buildings site in Splott, Cardiff, are set to move forward after planning officers recommended the scheme for approval.The application by property developer JR Smart will be discussed by councillors on Wednesday (15 June 2016). It proposes the construction of apartments in three separate blocks on the 25,833 sq ft site in Courtenay Road.Block one is a four-storey building comprising 12 apartments with the upper floor contained within pitched roof space. Blocks two and three will be three storeys.A report to be considered by the City of Cardiff Council’s planning committee said the approval recommendation is subject to a section 106 agreement. Conditions include an affordable housing contribution of 20 per cent or – in the event that the units cannot be provided on site – a contribution of £405,420.According to the documents set to be scrutinised by the council, a petition with 55 signatures from nearby residents has been received objecting to the proposed development.Concerns logged included the “loss of the historic building, the unsympathetic design of the replacement buildings, inadequate on-site parking provision and increased traffic congestion”.A planning application for the demolition of the College Buildings was approved in January 2016.