PLANNERS have extended permission for land earmarked as the site of four 12-storey tower blocks and a hotel, to continue as a temporary car park on Winwick Street, Warrington, for another three years.
Applicants Demetrius Ltd had been seeking retrospective planning permission to continue to use of land for car parking for a temporary period of 4 years.
But Warrington Borough Council planners have ruled that the use of the site as a car park shall cease within three years of the date of this permission, unless a further planning permission is granted by the Local Planning Authority for the continued use of the land as a car park.
Within three months of this permission being issued, thirty external planters will be installed on site with a bedding mix and shall be maintained and replanted in perpetuity throughout the duration of this planning
consent to ensure that the development will be of a satisfactory appearance.
Outline Planning (Major) with some matters reserved is currently pending for the demolition of existing structures and the erection of a mixed-use development comprising four blocks of up to 12 storeys to accommodate up to 550 residential dwellings (Use Class C3), a 160-bed hotel (Use Class C1) and 3,000sqm commercial/office/retail floorspace (Use Class A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, B1, D1 and D2) with associated access, public realm works, parking and servicing.
The site has been in use as a car park since around 2010, and this use has been extended by various temporary permissions. The location is in Warrington town centre, near Central railway station and adjacent to uses that require parking provision, such as the college and The Hub.
Given the existing use that has been extended in the past, the use as a car park is acceptable in principle and preferable to the land being vacant.
The site is subject to a pending application for its redevelopment with four residential tower blocks, a hotel and commercial / retail. This application is pending, subject to the agreement of the S106. The continued use of the site as a temporary car park is considered acceptable and will not prejudice the delivery of this site as a development in the future.
The surrounding uses are mixed, including shops, business premises, a college, a council building and flats. The flats are on the opposite side of Winwick Street, to the east of the site. The use of the site as a car park is assessed not to have a detrimental effect on the amenity of these residents.
For the reasons contained above it is considered that the proposal is acceptable when assessed against Warrington’s adopted Local Plan (2023), taking into account material considerations. It is therefore recommended for approval.
