A former pub in Filton looks likely to be bulldozed and replaced with a five-storey block of student flats after councillors unanimously granted planning permission.
South Gloucestershire Council’s Development Management Committee approved the demolition of the vacant Bristol Concorde (Brewers Fayre) pub, which will be replaced with 99 student beds for the University of the West of England, along with two ground floor shops or restaurants.
But concerns were raised that the occupants would ignore a tenancy agreement banning them from bringing cars within two miles of the site at the Shield Retail Centre.
Planning officers, who recommended giving the go-ahead, told the meeting that some harm would be caused to the setting of the nearby Grade II-listed art deco Pegasus House – the birthplace of the British aviation industry – but that the scheme was acceptable and would ease pressure on local housing.
Ward councillor Adam Monk (Labour, Filton) told the committee on Thursday 14th March 2024:
“This is a really good application.”
“I have a concern about the height of it dwarfing Pegasus House, which is an historically significant building in the history of South Gloucestershire as it is where the first presence of flight was based from within the area, so that is a major consideration.”
“I recognise it’s a perfect location for this type of accommodation, it’s right next door to an open green space, there is a sports centre there and it’s on good bus routes.”
“My major concern is the controlling and monitoring of parking.”
“I accept that a tenancy agreement says students can’t park within two miles but I’m really concerned about how that would be monitored.”
“To leave that down to the residents to complain means the resident needs to identify the vehicle with the DVLA, then identify it’s a student, then identify who they need to contact to inform them that someone is parking within a two-mile exclusion zone.”
“It will be putting unfair pressure on local residents.”
“There will be 100 students in this accommodation and to believe they won’t leave their cars is naive.”
Committee member and council chairman Mike Drew (Lib Dem, Yate North) said the new L-shaped building would not have a detrimental effect on Pegasus House, the former headquarters of the Bristol Aeroplane Company.
Airbus restored the property and brought it back into use 11 years ago after it had been left derelict for two decades.
He said:
“This should reduce the demand for HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) in the area which the people of Filton will be grateful for”
“My only real concern is the waste management.”
“Students are not known for putting things in the right bins, so I will be interested to see how they recycle what they are supposed to recycle.”
Officers told members that the bin storage was considered acceptable and that UWE already had a policy banning students’ cars within two miles of its campus, which it enforced through a liaison officer.
The plans, by developers Eagle One Retail, include solar panels and 100 cycle spaces.
✍ Article by Adam Postans, Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
