Decision made on plan to turn Leicester offices into flats

A bid to convert a city centre office block into 18 flats has been rejected over concerns the homes would be too small, too dark and too noisy. Planning officers at Leicester City Council refused a request by Mr V Pala to change the use of the Eldon Street building so it could be turned into new homes.

Very little detail was given by the applicant about the scheme in the documents it submitted to the authority. However, drawings suggested the 18 apartments would have all been one-beds with a combined kitchen and living area in each. Three of the homes would have been on the ground floor of the building. There would then have been five flats on each of the first, second and third floors.

However, the proposed flats would have been too small and would have had inadequate light, council officers said. Officers also raised concerns that there was not enough information in the plans to show that future residents would not be plagued by noise from nearby businesses.

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Moreover, the scheme would require external alterations to the building to fill in brickwork, and replace windows and the ground floor roller shutters. Demolition work was also proposed at the back of the building to create a courtyard area. These works would require full planning permission, not the change of use permission which Mr Pala had requested, the council said.

Change of use permission is needed when an applicant wants to use a building for a purpose which falls into a different planning class than is currently permitted – in this case, offices to residential use – but only when no work is required to the outside of the building.