tregonwell road planning consultants bournemouth
Computer generated image of the approved development – Image courtesy of Anders Roberts Cheer

Bournemouth Borough Council: Pure Town Planning are delighted to announce that, teaming up once again with ARC Architects, we have recently secured a very valuable planning permission for a 54 unit residential and holiday let development on the site of the former Winter Gardens Hotel in Tregonwell Road, Bournemouth. The approved scheme involves the redevelopment of this site which has been vacant for over a decade. The approval will undoubtedly breathe new life into this site and surrounding streetscene by introducing an attractive proposal, consisting of 46 residential apartments and 8 holiday units.

The former Winter Gardens Hotel closed its doors in 2002, following which planning permission was granted in 2003 to demolish the hotel and replace it with a mix of residential/holiday units. However, due to the unviability of the approved scheme, this prominent site has remained vacant for over 10 years, within which time it has become an eyesore in the streetscene and a burden on surrounding properties and businesses.

Following many attempts to revive the site through various applications, a revised scheme was submitted in September 2014 which fully addressed the previous concerns of both the neighbouring residents and the Bournemouth Borough Council. Although the site is ideally placed in close proximity to a range of public transport and services in Bournemouth town centre, due to its built-up location, the site is surrounded on three sides by neighbouring residential and hotel development of various density and scale. As such, the key design elements incorporated by ARC Architects involved maximising the site’s potential for the applicant, respecting the privacy and amenity of neighbouring properties, whilst simultaneously creating a picturesque and distinctive scheme, being a welcomed and long overdue addition to the Tregonwell Road streetscene.

Following rigorous and comprehensive consultation between Pure Town Planning and the respective Council officers, the scheme was deemed acceptable on all fronts, with the exception of an objection on tourism grounds, which necessitated the application being heard at Planning Committee. In the midst of a lengthy planning committee, it was put to members that the proposal would comprehensively transform this derelict blot on the landscape, into an attractive development, finally resurrecting this once important site, whose previous approval had effectively sterilised the site and prevented redevelopment for over a decade, to the detriment of both the neighbouring residents and wider locality as a whole. Despite the tourism objection, committee members recognised the clear merits of the proposed scheme and how it would finally usher in a positive and striking redevelopment of this long-since forgotten site. As such, the proposal secured almost unanimous support from committee members and the application was approved.

The approved scheme will pave the way for the belated redevelopment of this vacant site through the creation of high quality designed residential and tourist accommodation, with ample parking and attractive amenity spaces, which undoubtedly create a positive contribution to the site and re-energises the wider Tregonwell Road area. All in all, this large scale redevelopment scheme has been a successful collaboration between ourselves at Pure Town Planning, ARC Architects, Section 106 Affordable Housing and Sturt & Company, in delivering a comprehensively designed and expertly negotiated and managed application from start to finish, which has heralded a highly desirable proposal which has been determined as the most suitable and attractive design solution for this once vacant and derelict site.

As you can see, here at Pure Town Planning, we like nothing more than securing our clients planning approvals. If you are working on a large residential development and are looking for a firm who will work tirelessly to steer your development through the planning process and secure that all-important planning permission, then why not give us a call or send us an email to info@puretownplanning.co.uk.