Member Article

New Homes Proposed For Former Horsforth Office Building

A former office building in a central location in Horsforth could be given a new lease of life and transformed into a brand-new apartment development, with a gross development value of approximately £5million, as part of a recently submitted planning application.

Greatminster House sits on the junction between Low Lane, Troy Road and Lister Hill, just a short walk from Horsforth railway station. Development company, Avenir Works plans to convert the building into a selection of high quality, one and two-bedroom, contemporary apartments, designed by Leeds based Brewster Bye Architects.

A permitted development application has now been submitted, to transform the 1960s building into 21 apartments, along with a separate planning application to significantly improve its façade. In addition, a further planning application has been submitted that would see the building’s pitched roof removed and another storey added to accommodate a further five, two-bedroom apartments. Improvements would also be made to the building’s existing landscaped grounds and car park.

Aimar Natheer, from Avenir Works, said: “Horsforth has become one of Leeds’ most sought after residential suburbs in recent years and there is huge demand in the area for high quality new homes, with parking, that are close to the town’s rail links, shops, bars and restaurants. This development would tick all the boxes and give a tired office building that has been mostly unoccupied in recent years, a brand-new lease of life.”

Chris Austin, managing director at Brewster Bye Architects, said: “Greatminster House was brought into Horsforth’s conservation boundary back in 2008 and highlighted as an ‘opportunity for enhancement’. These plans would realise the building’s potential, replacing its dated glass curtain walling with more sympathetic materials and design, that respond to the heritage and architectural character of the local area.

“This would also be more in keeping with all the other development work in the local area in recent years, which has seen the historic Horsforth Mills and Troy Mill also converted into highly sought-after apartments. In addition, replacing the pitched roof with a new structure and storey, would give the building a contemporary composure and enhance its residential appearance, without dominating the building, or overly exceeding its current height.”

Avenir Works has completed several other high-profile residential projects in Leeds recently including converting 53 The Calls in the city centre into 19 loft style apartments. The developer is currently transforming Centenary House on North Street in Leeds’ Northern Quarter into a mixed-use development consisting of 85 apartments with commercial space. Work is also now underway at 16 & 17 East Parade, where Avenir Work is creating a mixed-use development comprising of residential apartments, an apart-hotel and commercial space. The developer’s upcoming pipeline and land bank currently includes sites in key locations throughout the UK that could deliver approximately 600 homes.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Steven Wright .