The Victorian Society Objects to the Proposal
The Victorian Society has written a strong letter of objection to the proposed 'eco-construction' in the Thetford Building Garden (see the panel below).
The Victorian SocietyOff-site link is a national conservation and amenity society. Importantly, the society is a government appointed statutory consultee and must be informed by the City Council of any planning matters that affect Victorian or Edwardian properties. The Victorian Society has a department staffed with experienced, professional, conservation and planning advisers whose role is to comment objectively about planning applications.
We hope that the Planning Department and City Councillors will accord appropriate weight to the The Victorian Society's erudite opinion.
"Victorian and Edwardian buildings are irreplaceable, cherished, diverse, beautiful, familiar and part of our everyday life.
They contribute overwhelmingly to the character of places people love and places where people live. They belong to all of us. Their owners are really only custodians for future generations. Victorian and Edwardian buildings are part of our collective memory, and central to how we see ourselves as individuals, communities and as a nation."
Objection Letter 18 June 2008
Dear Mr Campbell,
Norwich City College, Ipswich Road, Norwich (Newmarket Road Conservation Area)
Thank you for notifying the Society of the above application. We wish to object to the erection of a new eco-style construction in the grounds of the Thetford building.
The construction of the building designed ‘primarily from an Eco basis’ (Design and Access Statement 08/00420/F) will not enhance the existing character of the Newmarket Road Conservation Area. The proposed site is in what was formerly the garden of the Thetford building which was built as a house in 1887 and is now part of the college. The new Centre would overwhelm this characterful Victorian house due to its comparatively large bulk and close proximity. The Thetford building is noted in the book Norwich in the Nineteenth Century as being one of the best examples of the Queen Anne Revival in the city. Its distinctive character would be compromised by the presence of a large, rendered, eco building directly behind.
Norwich City Council’s Local Plan specifically states that development within Conservation Areas will be considered in relation to whether; ‘every effort to conserve and retain the features which contribute to the area’s character can be demonstrated’(HBE8).These features would include the open spaces which make this part of Newmarket Road Conservation Area a pleasantly green and open suburb of Norwich. The Local Plan goes on to state that new design in conservation areas should respect and be ‘sympathetic to the form and character of the area’s development including any extant historic plot boundaries’(HBE8).
The applicants quote PPG15’s recommendation that gap sites or ‘negative’ buildings, should be seen as an opportunity to enhance a conservation area. This is not applicable to the garden of this house despite the existence of the temporary building. If, as the applicants suggest, the garden of the Thetford building could be visually improved due to the presence of the temporary structure the solution should be to remove it and restore the appearance of the garden to be in keeping with the character of the surrounding area.
We would therefore recommend that your council refuses this application consent.
Please contact the Society if we can give any further help over these or amended proposals.
Yours sincerely
Friday, 27 June 2008
Thursday, 17 April 2008
Letters of support
Darren Davis & Jenny Howe
Grove Walk
Norwich
NR1 2QH
April 15th, 2008
To fellow neighbours and friends,
We write to urge all those affected by the re-development plans for Norwich City College to consider the impact the proposals will have on your quality of life and ensure your concerns are raised with the planning officer, in writing, this week - whilst the opportunity still exists.
For our part, a major cause for concern is the loss of privacy in our house and gardens.
The proposals will mean the replacement of the college Sports Hall building immediately behind our house, with a central car parking area. Behind the car park, approximately 80 meters away from our house, will be the new buildings that may be up-to 18 meters in height.
We are both employees of Marsh Ltd, located in Victoria House - the prominent ‘T’ shaped five/six storey building set well back on corner of Queens Road and St Stephens Road.
The rear-facing five storey ‘leg’ of this building extends backwards to within around 10 meters of the boundary with the residential housing at the rear on Victoria Street, but the front part of the building is probably around 50 meters away.
If you want a sense of perspective, the building is a little taller than the maximum height of the proposed new college buildings, and maybe a little closer in proximity to the houses on Victoria Street, but we suggest you assess for yourself just how much the Marsh building dominates the skyline and dwarfs the houses it overlooks, when viewed from Victoria Street.
From inside the Marsh office (in the front part of the building, on the second and third floors that we inhabit), there is a clear, direct and uninterrupted view to the rear windows of most houses on Victoria Street, that potentially jeopardises privacy for the occupants.
The office car parking area spreads out behind the front part of the building, either side of the rear-facing ‘leg’ and accommodates around 450 cars (from memory). Fortunately, the houses and rear gardens on Victoria Street are a ‘level’ above the Marsh car-park, so there is no issue with users being able to look over garden walls or fences (inadvertently or otherwise).
This will not be the case for us with the proposed college multi-storey car parking facility.
Based on the submitted planning application details and the personal experience we have from working in the Marsh building, we feel the re-development will destroy our privacy.
Our rear garden and rear-facing windows will almost certainly be overlooked by the new college buildings (unless the design provides no outlook in our direction) and be in direct view of the new road, car parking area and pedestrian access paths that are planned.
Having two school age children, we value and recognise the importance of quality education, but think this is less to do with the fabric of buildings and far more dependent on the quality of teaching staff and learning resources made available to students.
We also value our privacy and do not want to feel so intimidated by being under constant observation of the City College staff or student population that we no longer freely use our garden, patio area or rear-facing rooms.
If you feel just as strongly about privacy or any other issue, please make sure that you register your concerns over the next few days.
Yours sincerely,
DW Davis & J A Howe
Grove Walk
Norwich
NR1 2QH
April 15th, 2008
To fellow neighbours and friends,
We write to urge all those affected by the re-development plans for Norwich City College to consider the impact the proposals will have on your quality of life and ensure your concerns are raised with the planning officer, in writing, this week - whilst the opportunity still exists.
For our part, a major cause for concern is the loss of privacy in our house and gardens.
The proposals will mean the replacement of the college Sports Hall building immediately behind our house, with a central car parking area. Behind the car park, approximately 80 meters away from our house, will be the new buildings that may be up-to 18 meters in height.
We are both employees of Marsh Ltd, located in Victoria House - the prominent ‘T’ shaped five/six storey building set well back on corner of Queens Road and St Stephens Road.
The rear-facing five storey ‘leg’ of this building extends backwards to within around 10 meters of the boundary with the residential housing at the rear on Victoria Street, but the front part of the building is probably around 50 meters away.
If you want a sense of perspective, the building is a little taller than the maximum height of the proposed new college buildings, and maybe a little closer in proximity to the houses on Victoria Street, but we suggest you assess for yourself just how much the Marsh building dominates the skyline and dwarfs the houses it overlooks, when viewed from Victoria Street.
From inside the Marsh office (in the front part of the building, on the second and third floors that we inhabit), there is a clear, direct and uninterrupted view to the rear windows of most houses on Victoria Street, that potentially jeopardises privacy for the occupants.
The office car parking area spreads out behind the front part of the building, either side of the rear-facing ‘leg’ and accommodates around 450 cars (from memory). Fortunately, the houses and rear gardens on Victoria Street are a ‘level’ above the Marsh car-park, so there is no issue with users being able to look over garden walls or fences (inadvertently or otherwise).
This will not be the case for us with the proposed college multi-storey car parking facility.
Based on the submitted planning application details and the personal experience we have from working in the Marsh building, we feel the re-development will destroy our privacy.
Our rear garden and rear-facing windows will almost certainly be overlooked by the new college buildings (unless the design provides no outlook in our direction) and be in direct view of the new road, car parking area and pedestrian access paths that are planned.
Having two school age children, we value and recognise the importance of quality education, but think this is less to do with the fabric of buildings and far more dependent on the quality of teaching staff and learning resources made available to students.
We also value our privacy and do not want to feel so intimidated by being under constant observation of the City College staff or student population that we no longer freely use our garden, patio area or rear-facing rooms.
If you feel just as strongly about privacy or any other issue, please make sure that you register your concerns over the next few days.
Yours sincerely,
DW Davis & J A Howe
Wednesday, 16 April 2008
Letters of support
Darren Davis & Jenny Howe
Grove Walk
Norwich
NR1 2QH
April 15th, 2008
To fellow neighbours and friends,
We write to urge all those affected by the re-development plans for Norwich City College to consider the impact the proposals will have on your quality of life and ensure your concerns are raised with the planning officer, in writing, this week - whilst the opportunity still exists.
For our part, a major cause for concern is the loss of privacy in our house and gardens.
The proposals will mean the replacement of the college Sports Hall building immediately behind our house, with a central car parking area. Behind the car park, approximately 80 meters away from our house, will be the new buildings that may be up-to 18 meters in height.
We are both employees of Marsh Ltd, located in Victoria House - the prominent ‘T’ shaped five/six storey building set well back on corner of Queens Road and St Stephens Road.
The rear-facing five storey ‘leg’ of this building extends backwards to within around 10 meters of the boundary with the residential housing at the rear on Victoria Street, but the front part of the building is probably around 50 meters away.
If you want a sense of perspective, the building is a little taller than the maximum height of the proposed new college buildings, and maybe a little closer in proximity to the houses on Victoria Street, but we suggest you assess for yourself just how much the Marsh building dominates the skyline and dwarfs the houses it overlooks, when viewed from Victoria Street.
From inside the Marsh office (in the front part of the building, on the second and third floors that we inhabit), there is a clear, direct and uninterrupted view to the rear windows of most houses on Victoria Street, that potentially jeopardises privacy for the occupants.
The office car parking area spreads out behind the front part of the building, either side of the rear-facing ‘leg’ and accommodates around 450 cars (from memory). Fortunately, the houses and rear gardens on Victoria Street are a ‘level’ above the Marsh car-park, so there is no issue with users being able to look over garden walls or fences (inadvertently or otherwise).
This will not be the case for us with the proposed college multi-storey car parking facility.
Based on the submitted planning application details and the personal experience we have from working in the Marsh building, we feel the re-development will destroy our privacy.
Our rear garden and rear-facing windows will almost certainly be overlooked by the new college buildings (unless the design provides no outlook in our direction) and be in direct view of the new road, car parking area and pedestrian access paths that are planned.
Having two school age children, we value and recognise the importance of quality education, but think this is less to do with the fabric of buildings and far more dependent on the quality of teaching staff and learning resources made available to students.
We also value our privacy and do not want to feel so intimidated by being under constant observation of the City College staff or student population that we no longer freely use our garden, patio area or rear-facing rooms.
If you feel just as strongly about privacy or any other issue, please make sure that you register your concerns over the next few days.
Yours sincerely,
DW Davis & J A Howe
Grove Walk
Norwich
NR1 2QH
April 15th, 2008
To fellow neighbours and friends,
We write to urge all those affected by the re-development plans for Norwich City College to consider the impact the proposals will have on your quality of life and ensure your concerns are raised with the planning officer, in writing, this week - whilst the opportunity still exists.
For our part, a major cause for concern is the loss of privacy in our house and gardens.
The proposals will mean the replacement of the college Sports Hall building immediately behind our house, with a central car parking area. Behind the car park, approximately 80 meters away from our house, will be the new buildings that may be up-to 18 meters in height.
We are both employees of Marsh Ltd, located in Victoria House - the prominent ‘T’ shaped five/six storey building set well back on corner of Queens Road and St Stephens Road.
The rear-facing five storey ‘leg’ of this building extends backwards to within around 10 meters of the boundary with the residential housing at the rear on Victoria Street, but the front part of the building is probably around 50 meters away.
If you want a sense of perspective, the building is a little taller than the maximum height of the proposed new college buildings, and maybe a little closer in proximity to the houses on Victoria Street, but we suggest you assess for yourself just how much the Marsh building dominates the skyline and dwarfs the houses it overlooks, when viewed from Victoria Street.
From inside the Marsh office (in the front part of the building, on the second and third floors that we inhabit), there is a clear, direct and uninterrupted view to the rear windows of most houses on Victoria Street, that potentially jeopardises privacy for the occupants.
The office car parking area spreads out behind the front part of the building, either side of the rear-facing ‘leg’ and accommodates around 450 cars (from memory). Fortunately, the houses and rear gardens on Victoria Street are a ‘level’ above the Marsh car-park, so there is no issue with users being able to look over garden walls or fences (inadvertently or otherwise).
This will not be the case for us with the proposed college multi-storey car parking facility.
Based on the submitted planning application details and the personal experience we have from working in the Marsh building, we feel the re-development will destroy our privacy.
Our rear garden and rear-facing windows will almost certainly be overlooked by the new college buildings (unless the design provides no outlook in our direction) and be in direct view of the new road, car parking area and pedestrian access paths that are planned.
Having two school age children, we value and recognise the importance of quality education, but think this is less to do with the fabric of buildings and far more dependent on the quality of teaching staff and learning resources made available to students.
We also value our privacy and do not want to feel so intimidated by being under constant observation of the City College staff or student population that we no longer freely use our garden, patio area or rear-facing rooms.
If you feel just as strongly about privacy or any other issue, please make sure that you register your concerns over the next few days.
Yours sincerely,
DW Davis & J A Howe
Friday, 11 April 2008
CRC Letters of support
From CRC Committee - We would like to thank John for his letter of support and generosity
Letters of support
From CRC Committee - Thanks once again to a supporter on Ipswich Road (due to the quality of this document we have posted a clearer image below)
Friday, 14 March 2008
Letters of support
Anonymous said...
A note to let everyone know just how hard the committe and others have been working behind the scenes. We now have a forum to air our concerns and seek a way forward. So please let us all get behind them. Thank you to all the committee and well done.
Good luck to everybody
Committee Widow
March 14, 2008 2:35 PM
A note to let everyone know just how hard the committe and others have been working behind the scenes. We now have a forum to air our concerns and seek a way forward. So please let us all get behind them. Thank you to all the committee and well done.
Good luck to everybody
Committee Widow
March 14, 2008 2:35 PM
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
Letters of support
As a long term Grove Walk resident I would like to thank all the Committee members for working so hard on our behalf. I can only begin to imagine how many hours have been spent on this work and I am sure all residents are very grateful for their time and commitment to the task.
You may well be like me, an occasional e-mailer and certainly not a 'Blogger' - but I am sure our relative 'silence' indicates a confidence in the Committee and agreement with the points made and work done, not disagreement or apparent apathy.
There may well be some actions which we will all be asked to undertake in the near future and I would encourage everyone to make time to support the Committee by taking the trouble to do so - we all need to work together on this!
Carole
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