'Bulky alien feature' planned for busy Chelmsford square despite market traders' worries

A tall and bulky information hub described as a “prominent and alien feature” planned at a busy part of Chelmsford High Street has been allowed despite concerns that it will block the space used by street traders. Chelmsford City Council planners had said the hub set to be installed in the pedestrian area known as Half Moon Square outside the entrance to the High Chelmer shopping centre would result in a “harmful, cluttered addition to the street” and would be ”physically and visually intrusive”, and due to its location, size and digital screens it would have a “harmful impact” on the appearance of the street scene.

But planning inspector Roger Shrimplin disagreed with this analysis arguing the hub would "not appear to be unduly large or intrusive, in spite of the uses to which the square may be put, including as a marketplace”. The hub, described as a “free-standing feature, relatively small in scale in the street scene but contemporary in appearance” would function as a multifunctional communication hub incorporating a digital screen advertising display.

It would have free calls to landlines, free wifi, a 32-inch touch screen to enable wayfinding an integral defibrillator and USB and wireless device charging. But a report from the council, when the application was refused for the second time in January, said the hub would interrupt the pedestrian flow of the area, creating an unnecessary obstacle for all users of the highway and in particular those with visual impairments.

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It adds: "The proposed hub would appear tall and bulky and would be a prominent and alien feature in the context of other street furniture within the area. The location of the proposed hub would be to the detriment of local businesses, blocking the space which is regularly used by street traders.

"The proposed hub would result in a harmful, cluttered addition to the street. It would be physically and visually intrusive, and due to its location, size and digital screens it would have a harmful impact on the appearance and function of the street scene.”

The previous application was refused on the grounds that it would be a “prominent, alien feature within the street scene” and would have resulted in an “unacceptable hazard and interference to pedestrians”. It added the proposed hub would have also blocked the area "which is frequently used by market street traders on multiple days per week".

However, planning inspector Roger Shrimplin said in his report that the hub would not be out of place and would not create a hazard. He said: “In my view, the contemporary design of the hub would not be out of place in this context, as the City centre continues to adapt and evolve. Nor would it add significantly to urban “clutter” in the High Street.

"Half Moon Square is a substantial open space and the proposed hub would be sited to one side of the square rather than in the centre. It would be located in a well-used part of the pedestrianised central area but it would not create a hazard to pedestrians in my opinion. The visual backdrops for different views of the proposed installation have been considered (as explained in the representations), and I am convinced that it would not appear to be unduly large or intrusive, in spite of the uses to which the Square may be put, including as a marketplace.”