Derby: Cathedral's concern over apartment block plans

Derby Cathedral officials are concerned about the plans

Derby Cathedral officials have objected to plans to build a nine-storey block of flats near the historic building.

Developers Wavensmere Homes and Wilson Bowden have lodged plans for the complex in the city's Cathedral Quarter near the Grade I-listed building.

The firms said the scheme, in Full Street, would be an "exemplary" development in a prime site.

However the cathedral warned it would be too big and would "overwhelm" the 16th Century place of worship.

Developers said the scheme would regenerate a site unused for a decade

The cathedral's chief operating officer Carol Thomas set out concerns in a letter to Derby City Council, which is considering whether to grant permission for the 186-flat block called Cathedral One.

In her letter, Mrs Thomas said: "This proposed building will dominate this space, will overwhelm the Cathedral and is simply not of the high quality of design that Derby should be striving for in such a key location.

"The position of the Dean and Chapter is therefore that this proposal would cause serious, albeit less than substantial, harm to the immediate setting and therefore diminish the significance of this most important and irreplaceable heritage asset within the city."

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said Mrs Thomas had urged the council to press the developers to redraw their plans on a much smaller scale.

James Dickens, managing director of Wavensmere Homes, previously said: "This challenging brownfield site occupies one of the best locations within Derby city centre and benefits from rich views of the Cathedral Quarter and the River Derwent.

"It has been vacant for 10 years and the opportunity to create an exemplary development, reflective of the prime gateway location, is exciting.

"We will create highly energy-efficient homes for well over 250 people who will then spend their time and disposable income locally."