Anglia Square: Civic watchdog welcomes revised Norwich plan

The new plans include pedestrian and cycle routes for the development

A civic watchdog has welcomed changes to a plan to redevelop a Norwich landmark, which it previously opposed.

The original proposal for Anglia Square involved a 20-storey tower block and 1,200 homes, but was halted by then-secretary of state Robert Jenrick.

New plans include a 60% smaller tower, 100 fewer homes, and increased green spaces.

The Norwich Society said it was with "a profound sense of relief" the plans had been changed.

It said it welcomed the "abandonment of the concept of Anglia Square as a major new destination for retail and leisure uses".

But the society said there were "no grounds for accepting 1,100 homes as the starting point for negotiations", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It also expressed concern about the "potentially cavernous effects" of a planned row of eight-storey blocks.

Despite the concerns, it said there could be a "successful outcome to this process, something which was invisible two years back".

The Norwich Society is a charity which it says is supporting the preservation, development and improvement of features of historic interest of the city.

Developers Weston Homes said it was reviewing feedback from public consultations earlier this month, and there would be another round of consultations in the future.