REVEALED: Debenhams plans redesigned after scheme to build flats stalled – Eastern Daily Press

Under the refreshed scheme the new building will be smaller than the one originally proposed after feedback from Norfolk Police and Norwich City Council.

The changes come nearly a year after plans first emerged to demolish the 1950s city centre store and build student accommodation and retail space at the site.

The Debenhams store closed in May 2021 (Image: Sonya Duncan) The firm behind the development said several other options were explored but all are “financially unviable” other than plans to demolish and rebuild the whole building.

A SMALLER BUILDING

New plans submitted by Orford House Developments Limited (OHDL) for the former Debenhams building will see the height reduced by two storeys.

Under the original designs, the new building would be 10 storeys tall and able to house 405 student studio flats.

The building will be two storeys shorter than the original plans (Image: Benchmark Architects/Norwich City Council)

Now the developer is proposing a building of eight storeys, with 377 flats – a loss of 28 rooms.

Lanpro, who has submitted the redesign on behalf of the applicant OHDL, said that the plans have been “welcomed by the City Council through initial feedback”.

The firm added: “Although the reduction in height represents a financial challenge, and pushes the scheme to the margins of viability, the applicant is committed to make this change given the positive impact on the heritage assets in close proximity, specifically the City Centre Conservation Area and setting of a number of listed buildings.”

Benchmark Architects, acting on behalf of OHDL, have also altered plans for the building’s exterior, including longer windows and changing some of the plans for the brickwork.

The old department store is now covered in graffiti (Image: Sonya Duncan) In June, Historic England raised concerns that the original designs “would cause harm to the character of the Norwich City Centre Conservation Area and to the setting of a number of listed buildings, including Norwich Castle”.

READ MORE: Major objection brings fresh twist to Debenhams saga

Historic England is against both the plans to demolish the site and the original designs for the new build, saying it would be “overtly dominant”.

NEW DETAILS EMERGE

The new plans also reveal further designs for the rebuild of the former department store.

A small cinema and gym are included in the plans for the lower ground floor.

The whole building will be demolished to below ground level if the plans are approved (Image: Sonya Duncan)

Three large retail spaces will be built into the ground floor level, with a fourth space on the floor below. The largest of these shops will be accessed at the corner of Rampant Horse Street and Red Lion Street.

While most of the floors will contain varying sizes of student accommodation, level six will also feature a ‘sky lounge’ and a dining room.

DOES IT HAVE TO BE DEMOLISHED?

In the summer Lanpro published a series of alternatives to the plans to demolish the site.

None of them proved viable financially other than to fully demolish the 1950s building to below ground level and develop the land into student rooms and a ground-floor retail space.

The design has undergone some changes (Image: Benchmark Architects/Norwich City Council)

Two other options have now been explored. The first is to lease the entire building to a single office occupier, and the second would see several businesses share the floor space.

However, a letter produced by Roche Chartered Surveyors proved there is little demand for such a large space and it would therefore be “financially unviable”.

Planners for Lanpro added: “The proposed development demonstrates a viable scheme that will continue to contribute to the commercial retail offering at ground floor level and meets the functional need to regenerate and transform this part of the city centre that remains in urgent need of compelling intervention from the planning system – this should weigh heavily in favour of the development.”