The applicant seeks modifications to proposals approved in 2013 (13/02136/REN), a renewal of 10/00041/FUL including the removal of Conditions 4,7,10,21 and 22.
This association has long sought the restoration of this important building. We have in the past had serious reservations about whether a large drinking establishment, even in the form of a boutique hotel, would be a suitable use for the building particularly in light of the challenge posed by the night time economy to city centre residents. Cooperation between the public and private sectors combined with sustained public pressure and media coverage over the past decade have brought about much improved management of the night time economy. We are also mindful of the pressing need for fresh investment in the city centre following the Covid 19 pandemic and the relatively high quality of the work done by the applicant in similar circumstances elsewhere.
We therefor have no objection to the modifications proposed or to the removal of conditions 4, 7, 10 and 22.
We do, however, object to the removal in its entirety of Condition 21 relating to limits to the patronage of the rear courtyard area. As we have stressed previously, the use of this large area by excessive numbers of drinkers could seriously harm the amenity of the occupants of the twenty to twenty five apartments in the immediate area. This would risk setting an unwanted precedent in other parts of the city centre as well as being contrary to Policy D6b of the Council’s adopted Placemaking Plan which requires that development not ‘cause significant harm to the amenities of existing or proposed occupiers of, or visitors to, residential or other sensitive premises by reason of loss of light, increased noise, smell, overlooking, traffic or other disturbance’. It has been for this reason that TARA has in the past pressed for limits to the number of patrons allowed to use this area at any one time and we believe that the Council was right to impose Condition 21 limiting numbers to 96, and to insist on its retention subsequently, and we ask that it continue to do so.