Councillor for Ouseburn Ward, Gareth Kane, is set to oppose plans for a proposed residential development comprising 292 apartments on the final parcel of land at Newcastle East Quayside.
Councillor Kane, has offered his support to residents at St Ann’s Quay and High Quays who say the proposed development, on plot 12 of the Quayside, is out of scale with existing apartment blocks and will infringe rights to sunlight and daylight and cause overshadowing.
A guardian of heritage, the influential Newcastle and Northumberland Society, has also come out against the development, saying it would blight the environment for generations.
Councillor Kane, said: “I am very concerned with the proposed planning application. Principally, I object on the grounds that there has been a misleading and inadequate public consultation process. Indeed, there has only been one public consultation event, which was held some months back, which many residents have told me was poorly advertised. The developers afforded me a private meeting to discuss their plans, which, I felt at the time, were good. However, the planning application, as now being put forward, has been substantially revised.
“To elaborate on this, the south face of the proposed development has moved forward taking it out of line with St Ann’s Quay and other buildings along the Quayside, whereas the plans presented for consultation had it in alignment. None of the changes were requested by the consultees, therefore, the consultation was misleading and ultimately meaningless.
“As highlighted by the neighbouring developments, the orientation of the building leads to overshadowing, with what I believe is an unacceptable level of impact to a number of apartments in St Ann’s Quay. The planning application itself admits the overshadowing is not compliant with Building Research Establishment (BRE) guidelines.
“Other critical factors includes St Ann’s Church, which features in the 2003 Tyne Gorge Study as a historic building whose position and prominence on the Quayside must not be obscured and this has not been fully reflected in the plans. I am also concerned about the potential damage that groundworks will do to the foundations of the church.
“An important factor to consider is that the travel assessment has failed to mention that nearby Horatio Street is cobbled, which will add to the noise impact from vehicles. I was also disappointed to see that the car club promised during the consultation to mitigate the low number of parking spaces, has been dropped. The new proposal only includes 47 parking spaces for 292 apartments. Without such a measure, the very low space-to-apartment parking ratio will put severe pressure on car parking for other local buildings, some of which are not protected by parking permits.”
John Matthews, chairman for Newcastle and Northumberland Society, said: “As a key guardian of our heritage, the Northumberland and Newcastle Society regularly reviews planning proposals affecting the city’s historic heart.
“We apply an ‘empathy architecture’ concept when considering planning applications and in that context we have carefully scrutinised the plans for Plot 12, Quayside, Newcastle and strongly believe this application, in its current form, should be refused.
“We would also like to express our frustration when trying to object to the planning application via the City Council’s portal, which was an extremely difficult and long-winded process and this has been the same for all parties who have tried to object. This must be made simpler.
“What is proposed seems like a desire to simply insert as large a structure as the plot can physically accommodate, it is a colossal, missed opportunity and if approved we believe it would blight this environment for generations.”
Louise Richley, director at St Ann’s Quay Management Ltd who has led the campaign opposing the proposed property alongside Ian McGlasson, director at High Quays, said: “We are delighted to have the support of Councillor Kane who is a well-respected environmentalist and prominent local figure.
“At St Ann’s Quay, 25 occupiers of east-facing apartments will see their views significantly reduced due to the proposed height, scale and proximity of the development, which will affect their outlook, sunlight and daylight. 11 apartments also risk losing their privacy due to being completely overlooked. This is simply not good enough and must not happen!”
Ian McGlasson, director at High Quays, said: “Councillor Kane has echoed our deep concerns about the proposed property development. Newcastle Quayside is known globally and is an area of pride with a deep heritage. We should be celebrating an iconic development but this current proposal has fallen well short.”
