Flats scheme for former Argos building set to be decided
Plans for 18 flats at the Carr Street site are on the agenda at next week's planning meeting - Credit: Charlotte Bond
A decision is expected next week on plans to convert the former Argos store in Ipswich's Carr Street into flats.
Redevelopment proposals for the building have been in limbo, with a still undecided planning application to demolish the third floor and part of the second floor to create a rooftop extension for 21 flats and a gym.
But a more recent application, submitted in July last year, seeks permission for 18 flats on the site, with little change to the streetscape and Angels beauty salon remaining in the retail unit at number 63.
Of the 18 flats proposed, 17 are one-bedroom and one is two-bed, and six will have private balconies.
An architect drawing of the frontage of the Carr Street building - Credit: b3 architects
A rooftop amenity space accessed by all apartments is included, alongside parking, cycle spaces and refuse storage.
No affordable housing allocation is provided, due to the development being made up of entirely flats on a brownfield site.
In the report prepared ahead of Ipswich Borough Council's planning and development committee on April 27, it states: "The proposals not only present re-use of a brownfield site but provide a mixed scheme of residential, on a windfall site, and the re-use of the ground floor retail unit within Ipswich Town Centre.
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"The proposal would be acceptable in terms of its design, appearance and heritage asset impact.
"Furthermore, the scheme would provide good access to outdoor amenity given the close proximity of Christchurch Park and the Waterfront and would be appropriate in terms of parking provision, biodiversity and highways considerations."
The development is on the agenda for next week's planning and development meeting, where councillors will decide whether to give approval.
Argos in Carr Street closed in 2019, moving into Sainsbury's - Credit: Archant
Argos revealed it would be closing its Carr Street store in June 2019 and the unit has been vacant since November of that year.
Plans to redevelop the building into flats have been in the pipeline since early 2020.
Once home to a number of retail giants, Carr Street has been popular for residential developments over the past few years, with Carr House - formerly part of the East of England Co-op department store - undergoing a £2million renovation into flats and the Woolworths building earmarked for conversion into 60 new dwellings.
