This week’s planning roundup includes a University of Reading (UoR) building, a bungalow, and two houses.
Also featuring this week, we have a planning decision in Newbury by West Berkshire Council, on a new park café.
Bungalow demolition and two-house replacement approved
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A bungalow in Caversham will be demolished and replaced with two houses despite concerns from neighbours about size and character.
Plans to demolish the bungalow at 16 Richmond Road and build two four-bed houses in its place were approved by Reading Borough Council (RBC) officers on June 30.
Neighbours had raised concern about the land being too small for two houses, a loss of privacy and the designs being out of character.
But officers said the designs are not out of character for the area and would not be overly excessive in scale.
Reading Borough Council (RBC) case officer Ethne Humphreys concluded: “Ultimately, when applying an overall critical planning balance of all material considerations, the benefits are considered to outweigh the conflicts.”
University building given extra time to make case for longer stay
A temporary university building will stay beyond its five-year limit after the council and the University of Reading (UoR) came to an agreement.
The Chancellor’s Building, a building which has 14 teaching rooms, two laboratories, student common areas and more, is located on Chancellor’s Way in the Whiteknights campus.
In 2016, RBC granted temporary permission for the building to be constructed and stay for five years until June 17, 2021, at which point the land should have been restored to its former condition.
The council said the appearance of the building is “unsuitable for this location in the long term, in the interests of the character of the area”.
It opened in 2017, costing £8.4 million and currently houses the School of Construction Management and Engineering (SCME) following its relocation from the URS and Engineering buildings.
UoR applied in March this year to keep the building permanently but withdrew the application this week after coming to an agreement with the council to work together to introduce enhancements to the building.
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Town planner Catherine Bartlett, on behalf of UoR, said: “We look forward to working with you very soon towards an acceptable suite of enhancements to Chancellors Building, which the council will be happy to support either in terms of an extension to the temporary period or for permanent retention of the building.”
Park café approved at Newbury park
A new park café has been approved at Victoria Park, in Newbury.
West Berkshire Council’s Western Area Planning Committee unanimously approved the Newbury Town Council plan on Wednesday evening (June 30).
The Kiosk in Victoria Park will be replaced with a new building with an indoor and outdoor seating areas, catering facilities, public toilets, changing facilities and storage.
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