Plan for 1,100 factory site homes set for approval

Developers plan to build homes, bars, restaurants and a hotel

Plans to build more than 1,100 homes on the site of a Victorian former textiles factory in Leicester are set to be approved.

Developers want to demolish most of the Corah factory, off Burleys Way, and replace it with flats, including blocks up to 18 storeys high, bars, restaurants and a hotel.

Leicester City Council planning officers have recommended the scheme be approved by councillors when they discuss it on Wednesday.

Applicants CityRegen Leicester Ltd and Galliford Try Investments Ltd have said most of the site has become derelict since the factory closed in the 1990s and the scheme would regenerate the area.

However, there have been more than 70 objections to the scheme, including concerns about the loss of much of the original factory, which dates back to 1865.

The developers said the site had become symbolic of the city's industrial decline

Under the proposal, the facade of the factory's Old Textile Building would be kept, with a six-storey flats building constructed behind it.

Two factory chimneys would also be retained as part of the development.

In documents lodged with the council, the developers said: "The redevelopment of the Corah site represents an unparalleled opportunity to regenerate a key post-industrial site in Leicester.

"Corah is the site of the former Corah Factory, which was once one of the main employers in the city.

"Since its closure in the 1990s, it has become symbolic of Leicester's industrial decline.

"Whilst some of the old factory buildings have been let out to small businesses, the majority of the site sits derelict."

An artist's impression shows how a bridge over the canal could look

Businesses based in the complex have previously told the BBC they would have no choice but to "move on" should the scheme get the green light.

Among the objectors is the Leicester Civic Society which, in a letter to the council, said: "While it is clear that the site is in need of redevelopment, the current plans will not achieve this in a sensitive manner.

"The former factory is possibly the most important landmark still remaining that marks Leicester's industrial heritage, especially in regards to the hosiery and knitted garment trade."

The society also raised concerns about the height of planned blocks, particularly the 18-storey tower proposed on the corner of Burleys Way and St John's Street.

The Council for British Archaeology, the Twentieth Century Society, and Historic Buildings & Places are also opposed to the loss of the majority of the former industrial buildings.

The plans also include a new footbridge to connect the rear of the Corah site to Abbey Park on the other side of the Grand Union Canal and a multi-storey car park with 239 spaces.

The city council said the scheme would be a "comprehensive regeneration of a substantial and part-derelict" site.

It said the homes would make a significant contribution to a shortfall in land for housing in the city and would deliver new routes for walking and cycling connecting the city centre to Abbey Park.

An artist's impression shows how the retained chimneys could look