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Onedovelane
A
MAJOR DEVELOPMENT BOOST FOR CENTRAL BRISTOL
A FAR-reaching scheme to regenerate
an inner city area of Bristol is being drawn up by a newly-formed
consortium made up of two well-established developers.
PG Enterprises, part of Bristol’s
award-winning PG Group, has joined forces with the country’s biggest
housing organisation and regeneration group, Places for People, with the
aim of transforming about five acres in St Paul’s with a proposal that
could attract up to £300 million worth of investment in the area.
The scheme is centred on land around
Dove Lane and Newfoundland Road which the consortium wants to redevelop
with a comprehensive mixture of residential, retail and employment uses,
together with community facilities designed to turn it into a vibrant,
living part of the city.
Proposals for the scheme include a
hotel and several areas of open space and the whole development will be
designed to become an exciting “gateway” to Broadmead at the city end of
the M32.
Broadmead is currently undergoing a
£500 million expansion which will bring a wide range of new quality
retail and leisure attractions.
Ian Walker, the managing director of
Redfield-based PG Enterprises, said: “We are looking to provide a
development that will incorporate landmark ‘signature’ buildings that
represent all that is good in modern urban design – incorporating
creativity and sustainability in a manner that will provide a boost for
the rejuvenation of the surrounding area.”
Father Gregory Grant, chairman of the
PG Group, added: “We want to create something that is beautiful. We want
people who come to Bristol to say they can’t leave without going to St
Paul’s.”
Tom Tippetts, Places for People’s
head of strategic land acquisition, said: “This represents a golden
opportunity to continue redeveloping the central area of Bristol and
create a viable and sustainable neighbourhood with a mix of homes and
jobs for local people.
“Working in partnership with the
council and local residents, we want to redevelop Dove Lane in a way
that links into the wider community and helps contribute to the ongoing
regeneration of the city centre.”
The project is being co-ordinated by
RPS, of Aztec West, specialists in design, planning and project
management.
Eight top architectural practices,
both local and overseas, have expressed interest in being involved in
the scheme and three will be shortlisted before the successful applicant
is chosen.
Meanwhile, arrangements are being
made to carry out an extensive public consultation exercise in and
around St Paul’s to find out what people in the area would like to see
in the redevelopment and explanatory leaflets and questionnaires are due
to be circulated to 2,000 homes and businesses.
Public exhibitions to obtain people’s
views are being held at the St Paul’s Learning and Family Centre at 94
Grosvenor Road from 10am to 8pm on February 23 and at Circomedia at St
Paul’s Church in Portland Square from 10am to 4.30pm on February 24.
Representatives from the consortium
and RPS are liaising closely with the St Paul’s Unlimited Community
Partnership and will be working with various other bodies.
These include Bristol City Council,
the South West Regional Development Agency, the South West Regional
Assembly, the Government Office for the South West and Business West.
The consortium aims to submit a
planning application to the city council in December.
PG Enterprises has already completed
a number of projects in the city, including the acclaimed mixed use
development of St Peter’s Court in Bedminster, while Places for People
is regarded as one of the most innovative housing groups in the country.
It is the UK’s largest
housing group, responsible for nearly 60,000 properties nationwide and
is heavily involved in regenerating parts of the South-West.
In addition, it offers
a wide range of care and support services to more than 5,000 people in
Bristol through what was formerly known as the Bristol Churches Housing
Association.
The proposed redevelopment site forms
a substantial part of an area currently the subject of a study by St
Paul’s Unlimited, a Bristol City Council initiative set up to ease the
way for the regeneration of the district.
The organisation is a partnership
between residents, various agencies and businesses to address some of
the area’s problems and to improve the quality of life for the people
living there.
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