Publishing House, at the bottom of The Vineyard, has gained prior approval to change from offices to residential use, and has now been sold.
It was vacated by Connexions, the agency charged with helping to find young people work, in August 2011, and there has been a To Let sign / For Sale sign outside since.
Isn’t all this part of the “plot” to be used for phase two of the charter development, happening from, when was it…2013?? I did always think it was odd that it was for lease/sale…when the opportunity for large scale development was in the offing in that area.
I guess now, with some much needed flats…it will likely adversely affect what development does happen? Mind you….with no development even on the horizon…perhaps a few more flats wouldn’t go amiss!?
I am, on the face of it, a little concerned about the traffic yet more much needed flats would bring…but then I thought, a new pedestrian crossing or two may solve all the issues.
Owned by the Vale ?
Both Publishing House and The Knowle are outside the plot earmarked for phase 2 of The Charter development. The boundary runs between them and the multi-storey carpark.
Thanks Bobbie.
Would a ‘bigger’ commercial site not have been more worthy of development – so yet another opportunity lost?
As Abingdon really needs more expensive flats, surely any residential build there….I mean, right there, slap bang next to whatever we may get (in 2013) is only going to hinder any plans and decisions?
And yes, a fair point by Mr C Chaos….who’s property was this to sell? Please…not The Vales, surely…..?
I think the size of the development is not called into question.
Phase 2, calls for demolition of the Charter & multi storey carpark to build the “Anchor development” (Supermarket). Propsed relocation of library/GP Surgery-Health Centre proposed 2nd floor. So far no supermarket has come forward.. perhaps ‘stigma’ attached to such a development.
Would it pull in more footfall to Abingdon??.
…I still think that Abingdon needs to decide “what it wants to be”, then aspire to become it…rather than various groups, bodies, initiatives, developers all pulling it in a multitude of disjointed directions….with a sum total of ” not very much” being the result.
Mind you….if you never ask the people what they want, at least you can never be accused of not meeting their expectations.
As long as “failure” continues to be an option, Abingdon will succeed in continuing to fail.
Still…nothing a couple of pedestrian crossings can’t sort out, and soon the flowers will be in bloom.
A few facts gleaned from publicly available information:
– The proposal is for 18 1-bed and 10 2-bed flats
– It is a car-free development i.e with no car parking facilities but 42 cycle spaces.
– As Bobbie says, it is not part of the area earmarked for redevelopment (which probably implies that it didn’t belong to the Vale, but i haven’t confirmed that.)
– It is not in the Town centre Conservation area.
– The Planning Application is P14/V2688/PDO and can be found on the Vale website. It is just an application for change of use so no drawings etc.
I think one of the key things here is to get the architecture right. There is an opportunity to turn an eyesore into something more in keeping with the rest of the town. It’s at a key corner plot, which is one of the first things you see when you come into town from Oxford. Let’s not succumb to the developers bottom dollar option and see something which looks really good – it can’t be that difficult and there would still be money to be made.
How can the planning officer even consider this proposal of 28 flats with no car parking? If this is approved then I pity the residents of the Motte and Whithington court who’s roads will surely become their parking lot ?
Captain K It is aimed at people who don’t have cars. Believe it or not, such people do exist – especially in locations with good bus services and all the usual facilities within walking distance. Some people choose not to have them, others can’t – for one reason or another.
So will there be a stipulation thT any buyers must not own a car? Realistically, how will you police that? As Captain K says they will park elsewhere…
Oh and the new Drayton Rd residents will all cycle everywhere and not add to the traffic problems at all….
It is a rather inane, unthought out, silly development idea, that is unrealistic, not in keeping and totally impracticable.
I am sure it will fly through planning without a hitch!
and Daniel, the developers will make a very tidy packet indeed
Yes Julian. More residential development in Abingdon with no infrastructure at all. I have not seen all these people cycling to work in the morning. Gone are the days when people could get a job around the corner. I would love to be able to cycle to work but in the 40 odd years living in Abingdon I have never been able to get a job in the town.
Must be something somewhere in stataturey planning regs that prohibits creating residential development without an amount of residents parking? If not what’s to stop the freeholders of existing developments from turning their car parking into more flats ?
I hope the 42 cycle spaces are secure. I can’t imagine wanting to live right on that corner either.
28 flats and no parking, are you in cuckoo land?
What the hell are these people smoking?
have a look at the average street with no restrictions these days.
Actually I expect there are people who want Eco friendly homes, and the car free element would fit. I would have thought though that those people would want the whole building spec to be Eco friendly and I would think that puts the price up considerably. I wonder how many people could afford to buy them, or actually want to live somewhere like that any way.
or more likely… most of them will be sold to btl investors.
who will then rent them out to people with cars as they cant afford to buy near to where they actually work..
You know, at those hundreds of jobs at Milton and Harwell, that are justifying building 800 houses in the green belt north Abingdon.
Local Government Secretary, Eric Pickles called on councils to ensure more parking spaces are provided alongside new homes to end a ‘vicious cycle’ where clogged up streets leave motorists to run a gauntlet of congestion, unfair fines and restrictions.
The government is proposing further action is taken to rein back in arbitrary ‘maximum parking standards’, which have previously prevented and restricted house builders from providing homes with car parking spaces that families want and need.
Where sufficient parking spaces are not provided people will resort to either tarmacking over their front garden or parking on the street. This can then result in a counter-productive increase in municipal on-street parking restrictions and fines.
The Secretary of State was clear that new developments should be built with sufficient parking that reflects local market demand.
Eric Pickles, said:
Families want a home with space for children to play in the garden and somewhere to park and load the car or cars. The consequences of not building this are there for all to see: more cars left on the kerb, more cars parked in the streets, more municipal parking restrictions and more parking tickets.
No space at home leaves no space on the road. We need to cease this vicious cycle that leaves our streets endlessly clogged up. Allowing the market to offer enough parking spaces will help take the pressure off our congested roads.
Further information
There are plenty of people that are cyclists in Abingdon, just look at how many of them cycle on the pavements & in Bury Street!
I find it hard to believe that so many apartments are to be built with no Car parking space. are there so many people in Abingdon on Thames who only use a cycle?
Eco friendly homes surrounded by traffic pollution. Sounds marvellous.
Non driving pensioners .