United Bristol Healthcare Trust – plans for around 19 new buildings in Kingsdown. UBHT showed us their plans for land that is surplus to the hospital’s needs, which they will sell with planning permission. They propose to build:
• Four 4-storey town houses on Kingsdown Parade on the old ambulance maintenance site between the chip shop and Marlborough Hill, with mews houses behind. We think that 4 floor houses would be too tall; 3 floors would be better. To enhance the Parade, the new houses should step down to meet their 2 storey neighbours.
• On Horfield Road, on the boarded up garden site – a block of flats 3 storeys tall. the large mass of a block of flats is unacceptable. They would overdevelop the site. They would be out of scale with the 2 storey houses on each side of them and would create an unfriendly canyon with the BMH on the other side of the road. Any development must respect its architectural context.
• At Somerset Street West End – 4 houses in place of Rose Cottage. We feel this is an overdevelopment.
• At the bottom of Alfred Hill – houses behind Somerset House. This would involve cutting an arch through the house to gain access to the back garden. This would cause irretrievable damage to the structure of a Grade II listed building. New houses in this small garden would be too close to the existing house and overdevelop the site. KCG says that this proposal is unacceptable.
The proposals are currently on display in Alfred Harris. Please study them and let us know your views.
Bristol University – Phase 1 development. In the December summary we explained why KCG opposed the mass and design of the office block that the University proposed to build on the St. Michael’s Hill, Children’s Hospital site. Our response was reported in the Evening Post. Two of our committee were interviewed on BBC Bristol, Breakfast Live. The University has new proposals. We expect the public to be involved in a further consultation at the end of March. KCG is keenly interested in the University’s development because it affects all of us. We have asked for better documents and displays next time. We want to see the colour and design of the new buildings, how they will respond to the context of the Conservation Area and their effect on the strategic views into and out of Kingsdown. The Evening Post reported that the University has the “sail” tall building on Tyndall Avenue because it had become too expensive and growing more expensive. KCG welcomed that decision.
Next Meeting of the committee – is on Tuesday 19th February. Please email the secretary at se*******@di*******.net about any matter of concern on the subject of Kingsdown.
