Plans for arcade in Reading and flats move forward

A leisure company that wants to bring an arcade, VR gaming, table hockey and more to Broad Street Mall has applied for approval for its branding.

Elsewhere, the owners of a long-vacant building in the opposite part of the town centre are moving ahead with plans to convert it into apartments.

And further afield, a developer has applied to build homes on a site in Caversham that has been sealed off for years.

You can view the applications featured by typing the reference number in brackets into the council’s planning portal.

Advertising for Broad Street Mall arcade centre (231742)

The elevation designs for Urban Fun Reading in the Broad Street Mall. Credit: DMU Designs

FunBox Entertainment, the company that will be opening an arcade and gaming centre in Broad Street Mall, have applied for advertising consent for its branding for the venue.

The centre will be called ‘Urban Fun’ with this branding being located in Queens Walk, being made up of two fascia signs and one projecting sign.

The project involves the merger of units 49, 50 and 52 of Broad Street Mall, which were previously occupied by New Look and a vaccination centre, to create the venue.

The plan for the merger of the units was approved on December 6.

Changes to Bristol & West Arcade conversion (231779 and 231780)

The Bristol & West Arcade in Friar Street, Reading town centre. Credit: James Aldridge., Local Democracy Reporting Service

Mountley Ltd, which owns the Bristol & West Arcade has applied to make layout changes to approved plans to convert the building into 26 apartments.

The company won permission to convert the arcade into apartments in the summer of 2022.

Applied for changes involve making some of the one-bedroom flats larger to accommodate two people, and some of the two-bedroom flats smaller to accommodate three people, down from the four-person flats that have been approved.

The plans are split into application 231780, relating to the provision of  17 one-bed and three two-bedroom flats, and application 231779, which provides six one-bed flats.

Soane Point (231789)

Scaffolding over the Soane Point building in Market Place in Reading, which is undergoing conversion into apartments and façade works, Credit: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting Service

Tene Living, which is in the process of converting Soane Point in Market Place into apartments has submitted requested information to Reading Borough Council.

The company’s plan to make changes to the exterior of the building and add extensions to create 38 apartments was approved in February.

A condition of approval was that Tene Living had to submit contaminated land assessments and remediation, which have now been provided to the council.

Once the redevelopment of Soane Point is complete it will contain 182 flats, with 144 of these being created by converting defunct office space.

Replacement homes in Caversham (231733)

Elevation plans to build two homes at 7 Hawthorne Road Caversham. Credit: Rammurti Design

Building company Rosegold Estates has applied to build two semi-detached homes near Reading Cemetery.

The site in Hawthorne Road has been vacant for years after a one-storey house was demolished there.

The 7 Hawthorne Road, Caversham site, where a developer wants to build two three-bedroom homes. Credit: Google Maps

Now, Rosegold Estates wants to build two two-storey three-bedroom homes on the site with a loft.

Each would come with open open-plan kitchen and dining space on the ground level, two double bedrooms and a study on the first floor, and a double bed and shower in the loft.