st annes court - compressed

8/20/2019 St Annes Court - Compressed

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D e s i g n & A c c e s s S t a t e m e n t S i t e a t L o m b a r d S t ,D i g b e t h , B i r m i n g h a m

ZEB 736_DAS

June 2015


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section d - local authority pre-applicationadvice session

section e - final design development

submission proposal design: elevation development

submission proposal design: material paletteindustrial rhythm of areasubmission proposal design: elevation developmentsubmission proposal design: site plan developmentsubmission proposal design: balcony developmentsubmission proposal design:- use- opportunities / constraints- scale- layout- amount- landscaping- access- sustainabilitysubmission proposal design proposed ground floor plansubmission proposal design proposed elevations

contents

introduction

project timeline

section a - context appraisal

locationlocal land useconnectionsamenities & usessocio-economictownscape characterindustrial typology of areasite constraintscontextual photographslong range views of sitestreet views of sitecharacter assessmentsair quality assessmentfoul water and utilitiesnoise impact assessment

environmental surveytransport statementsite opportunitiesexisting site elevations

section b - local authority

consultation

section c - pre-application design

development

pre-application design: light ingresspre-application design: ease of access, scale,window locationspre-application design: prominent access points

pre-application design: elevation developmentpre-application design:- use- opportunities / constraints- scale- layout- amount- landscaping- access- sustainabilitypre-application proposed site planpre-application proposed elevations 2

information

applicant

Grange Securities Ltd

architects

Zebra Architects

Chris Partington/Julian HillStablemasters CottageBasin RoadDiglisWorcester

WR5 3DA01905 351 472

[email protected]

team

Planning consultant

RCA Regeneration

Transport consultant

Mott Mcdonald

Air Quality consultant

Bureau Veritas

Acoustic consultant

Environmental Noise Solutions

Site investigation consultant

Tier

Utilities Consultant

BWB


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Direction of North unless otherwise noted.

© Zebra Architects Ltd. All maps, plans, drawings and images are not toscale, and are copyright of Zebra Architects Ltdunless otherwise stated.

OS maps are used under licence no. 100020449

introduction

This statement has been prepared for GrangeSecurities by Zebra Architects, to support a fullplanning application for the development of landat Lombard Street, Digbeth, Birmingham.

The proposed development will provide up to 170new residential dwellings and 275sqm of retail

space.

This design & access statement follows thesequence of the design process. Guidancehas been provided from design and access

statements - how to write, read, and use them by CABE, 2006. It consists of an analysis of thesite and its context, and identifying opportunitiesand constraints for development. The designis then discussed in detail explaining how andwhy the design has evolved, and is examined interms of use, amount, layout, scale, landscaping,appearance, and access.

The design and access statement is a ‘living

document’ and will be continually updated duringthe design process.

3

C o u n t y - w i d e m a p s l o c a t i n g t h e s i t e- n o t t o s c a l e

U K - w i d e m a p l o c a t i n g t h e s i t ei n t h e w e s t m i d l a n d s

W e s t m i d l a n d s m a p l o c a t i n g t h es i t e i n b i r m i n g ha m

B i r m i n g h a m m a p l o c a t i n g t h es i t e i n b i r m i n g ha m c i t y c e n t r e

B i r m i n g h a m c i t y c e n t r e m a pl o c a t i n g t h e s i t e i n D i g b e t h


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Outline Approval

Outline planning application(reference 2011/00738/PA)was approved on 06th May2011 Approved Scheme was neverbuilt

START

PROJECT TIMELINE

Development of the scheme

Following pages explain the key steps in theevolution of the design and process undertakenin order to produce the proposal.

(to be read in conjunction with the contents)

Feasibility

Zebra approached to designa residential development onpart of the approved schemesite, adjacent to St Anne’sChurch.

SECTION A:Context Appraisal

Context appraisal considers theconstraints and opportunitiesoffered by the proposed site

SECTION B:Local AuthorityConsultation

Consultations with the local planningauthority took place, which alongwith correspondence regarding

the previous approval, resulted inamendments to the final proposal.Further to the previous approach(ref: 2011/00738/PA) variousconversations were had with thelocal authority before residential usewas considered.There has been correspondencewith Joanne Todd, Principal PlanningOfficer of the city centre team atBirmingham City Council Planning Authority.

E x i s t i n g S i t e E l e v a t i o n V i e w f r o m B r a d f o r d S t r e e t n o t t o s c a l e

E l e v a t i o n s o f e x i s t i n g a p p r o v e do u t l i n e p l a n n i n g a p p l i c a t i o nn o t t o s c a l e

4


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SUBMITTEDPROPOSAL June 15

SECTION C:Pre-application Design

Development

Initial design solution created to presentto the local authority for an in depth pre-application advice.

Key design changes include:- Feature corners highlighted by materialchange and building massing.- Stepped side elevations to lessen roofheight towards Church: 3 storey - 6storey height- Lombard street elevation stepped backfrom street to create wider throughway- Material Changes and Balconies breakup long elevations.- Footprint designed in ‘U’ shape arounda central parking courtyard, also allowslight ingress to St Anne’s rose window

P r o p o s e d E l e v a t i o n sn o t t o s c a l e

SECTION D:Local Authority Pre-application Advice

The local authority advised that taking more inspiration from theindustrial typology buildings in Diglis rather than the newer residentia ldevelopments would be more appropriate. Other conclusions thatwere drawn from the pre-application advice consultation include:

- Using a simpler material palette to better reflect the site’s industrialheritage would be more suitable.

- Rather than stepping the side elevations, a five storey buildingthroughout would be preferable- Modern interpretations of the industrial corner features present onneighbouring buildings would be welcomed on this development.- To highlight the entrance points and make the building morelegible it was recommended that the stair cores become expressedelevationally.- It was felt that a simpler and more effective solution should befound to deal with the sloping s ite as there were many level changesproposed within the original design.

SECTION E:Final Design Development

Conclusions from the Local Authority Pre-application advice consultation was takenon board to re-think the design into a more acceptable scheme,

Key design changes include:- Blue engineering brick is the predominant material choice, harking back to thesite’s industrial heritage.

- Simpler massing of the building is restricted to five storeys in height, with minimal‘stepping’ of the facade occuring.- Facade intrigue is created by the regular brick pilasters that project slightly andcause shadows to be cast.- Larger window modules are a modern interpretation of the industriallyproportioned windows found in factories near by- Metalic amber coloured spandrels infill one third of the window modules, creatingrandom patterns to contrast the logical pattern created by the brick pilasters.- The historic building line has been incorporated into the scheme, by pushing theproposal line to the back of footpath. This is a typical feature of the Digbeth Area- Footprint remains to be designed in ‘U’ shape around a central parking courtyard,also allows light ingress to St Anne’s rose window.

P r o p o s e d E l e v a t i o n sn o t t o s c a l e

S k e t c h E l e v a t i o n D e s i g nn o t t o s c a l e

5


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6

SECTION A:CONTEXT

APPRAISAL

location

The site is located in Digbeth, Birmingham. Itcomprises of a former light industrial unit andassociated car parking area (now demolished)between the main roads Bradford Street, also,Cheapside and the subsidiary roads LombardStreet and Alcester Street.

Birmingham is the second largest city in England;Its location in the centre of the country and thefact that it is encircled by major highways give itideal transport links on a large scale as well aslocally.

Digbeth is an area within Birmingham city centre,with excellent transport facilities. Two major train

stations and Birmingham Coach Station are allwithin one mile of the proposed site, as well asa wide array of more local bus stops. Within onemile of the proposed site are also Birmingham’smain retail areas and amenity facilities, includingthe Bullring Shopping Centre, which is visiblefrom the site along Bradford Street.

Historically, Digbeth was a major industrial areaof Birmingham, however much of the industrialbuildings have fallen into disuse and the newemerging land usages are predominantlyresidential and retail use. Currently Digbethhas been named as one of the five key areasof planned development as part of the ‘Big City

Plan’; a scheme that plans to regenerate theold industrial buildings into apartments, retailpremises, offices and art facilities.

Various public open spaces are found within shortdistance, and the variety of pedestrian, cycle, carand public transport links offer the site variousaccess options.

Location Plan - not to scale


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local land use

The diagram opposite shows the general landuse of the area surrounding the site. It can beseen that the site is predominantly surroundedby existing industrial land; Some industrial useis still prominent in Digbeth, however much hasfallen into disuse. There are many examples ofresidential conversions of industrial buildings as

well as more modern residential developmentswhich have made use of brown field sites.Considering the proximity to Birmingham’s citycentre, there are a large amount of unusedbrown field sites in Digbeth, one of which is theproposed site.

The site is well placed for the proposal toconnect with Birmingham city centre (accessiblevia bradford street travelling to the North Westof the site). More locally there is a medium sizedsupermarket, small local shops, internationalsupermarkets, public houses, hotels, gymsetc that provide good retail and communityamenities. One such community amenity is

St Anne’s RC Church, a locally listed religiousbuilding directly adjacent to the proposed site.

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Location Plan Indicating Surrounding Land Uses - not to scale


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Location Plan Indicating Transport Links - not to scale

8

Birmingham map locating the site in birminghamcity centre, surrounded by major motorways

connections

Digbeth is located within the inner and outer ‘ring roads’around Birmingham. The outer ring road is formed by theM6, M5 and M42 motorways, which provide exemplarvehicular transport links to the wider surroundings. Thenearest motorway junction to the proposed site is the M6Junction 6, approximately 4 miles due North. Junction 1of the M5 and Junction 4 of the M42 are approximately 6miles due West and 8 miles due South East respectively.

The site is well served by public transport bus routes,with bus stops ‘Deritend, Birchall Street’ and ‘Deritend, Alcester Street’ both within 100m of the proposed site.Both are served by the following busses:- 50 (Digbeth Moor Street Selfridges / Maypole,Birmingham / Druids Heath, Kings Norton)- 31A (Birmingham Church Centre / Three MaypolesGreen Business Park)- 5 (Birmingham Church Centre / Solihull StationInterchange)- 3 (Birmingham Church Centre / Yardleywood, SladeLane / Acock’s Green Village)- 2 (Birmingham Church Centre / Maypole, Birmingham) As well as a wide array of other bus stops in the local

vicinity, Digbeth Coach Station is only 500m due NorthWest of the proposed Site, which is the major nationalbus link hub of Birmingham. From Birmingham city centreit is possible to catch buses to any area of Birmingham.

Train Stations Moor Street and Birmingham New Streetare less than a mile from the site, the latter being one ofthe busiest train stations in the UK.

The new/planned tram route is also within walkingdistance of the proposed site.


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9

amenities & uses

The majority of the shopping and retail areas nearto the site are in Birmingham city centre to theNorth West, however there are some examples ofmore local shopping sites. The main local centreis based around B4100 High Street Deritend,where there is a range of independent retail units,such as the Custard Factory.

There are many supermarkets in the local vicinity,predominantly to the north west of the site, aswell as some smaller local shops nearer to thesite. The largest Supermarket in the vicinity is theMorrisons Super-store 1.3 miles to the East, thisis also accessible via bus route from the site.

There is a good amount of public green spaces,especially considering the proximity to the citycentre.

The area is also served by Birmingham CityFootball Club.

education

There are a number of educational options in thearea. 9 established schools of varying levels areshown in the diagram opposite, however a largerrange of education facilities are also availablefurther afield in the remainder of Birmingham,made accessible by bus and train routes.

Local Amenities Plan - not to scale


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socio-economic

The Digbeth area was first settled upon in the 7thCentury and went on to become the first centre ofindustry in Birmingham. Due to an abundance ofnatural springs, wells, proximity of the river Rea andexcellent transport facilities such as the Grand UnionCanal and the Digbeth Branch Canal, Digbeth soonprospered to become heavily industrialised.

By the end of the 19th century Digbeth’s industrialprowess began to slow, which became anopportunity for immigrants from Italy and Ireland tosettle there instead, predominantly finding work inthe remaining industrial factories as labourers. Thismarked the beginning of the trend towards Digbethbecoming more residential. The Irish community stillhas a strong presence in Digbeth to this day.

Digbeth has recently become more known as acultural hub of Birmingham, with prominent streetart culture, creative institutes such as the convertedcustard factory and a diverse nightlife. The area isalso fast becoming popular with new businessesand young professionals.

Birmingham’s population has grown to becomethe second most populated city in the UK, afterthe Capital. Following the release of Birmingham’s‘Big City Plan’, which revealed Digbeth to be one ofthe potential areas of growth to be focused on forfuture development, there has been a resurgenceof residential development in the now disusedindustrial area.

“From the earliest beginnings at the heart of the city’s industrial development, the Digbeth area has constantlyevolved to meet changes, reinventing itself and adapting the built environment to meet the needs of new uses. Today the area is home to an established and growing creative sectorthat utilises the historic building stock, creating innovative spaces for business. It is fast becoming a hub for digital

media, gaming and arts companies complemented by adiverse cultural and nightlife scene. There are a range ofopportunities for new or converted workspaces, offices andcomplementary uses served by excellent public transportfacilities and within walking distance of the City Core. The proposed High Speed Rail terminus in Eastside will be accessible from the Digbeth area with direct links into the

station.”

http://bigcityplan.birmingham.gov.uk/digbeth/

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Map of Digbeth from 1880s - not to scale


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11

townscape character

The wider area of Digbeth is historically industrialin character, which dictates the local vernacular.Buildings that previously housed large manufacturersare now occupied by the smaller traders. Otherparts of Digbeth have fallen into disrepair over theyears, inspiring many residential conversions ofthe existing brick warehouses and factories. Thereare also more modern additions to the area wherebrown field sites have been converted into large

scale residential developments. Digbeth, althoughhistorically predominantly industrial in character, nowhas a variety of land uses - Residential being themost prominent emerging typology.

Business parks and a mixture of light industrial useinhabit the northern and western portions of thearea. Residential use is growing outwardly from theeastern portion of Digbeth. The residential elementis generally large developments of apartments withcourtyard spaces for vehicle parking, of a similarscale to the industrial surroundings. Amenities suchas community buildings and retail buildings aredispersed throughout Digbeth, however there is ahigher proportion on the busier B4100 High Street

that runs through Digbeth. Generally tall in height,most buildings are over three storeys, though rarelyexceeding six storeys.

On the whole, most of Digbeth is built in a darkred brick, with a wide variety of architectural detail. As a general theme, there is a high proportionof fenestration to walls, which was necessary toachieve the maximum amount of daylight penetrationinto industrial buildings. Openings are arranged in aregimented pattern and there are some examplesof where openings have been grouped into pairsfor decorative effect. Many of the fenestrationsare articulated with lintel or cill details that includechanges of material, decorative brick patternsor arched lintels. Multi-lit windows are prominent

in the industrial buildings, due to the expense oflarge panes of glass historically. Generally there islittle relief from the bulk of the industrial buildings,whose large mass and scale were necessary for theindustrial processes being performed within and tomake use of all available space efficiently.

The more modern buildings do not have a specificvernacular code, however the use of materials includebrick, render, powder coated metal and many others.Typically the modern buildings match the scale andmassing of the industrial buildings

Images of Local Vernacular


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Industrial Typology of Area

There is a strong industrial heritage in Digbeth,reflected clearly in it’s architecture.

Common Architectural Features:Large window openings in regimented patterns•Pier like protrusions from the building give the•elevations a strong vertical presence. Alsoprevents the long elevations becoming too ‘flat’by giving them a 3D relief element.Typically the buildings have largely proportioned•floor to ceiling measurements, therefore all thebuildings even though predominantly 3/4 storeyshigh are much taller than conventional buildingsof this number of storeys.Dark red brick is very common in the area, with•elements of blue brick on lower levels and tohighlight feature aspects,Soldier Courses over windows are common.•Horizontal Banding is common, often in an•alternative material to the red brick main walls.Buildings typically follow a line that is directly•adjacent to the pavement.

Images of industrial buildings within Digbeth


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site constraints

The site is located off Bradford Street and comprisesa brown field site that is a former light industrial unitand associated car parking area (now demolished).The land is bounded to the south by Cheapside,which is a road that runs parallel to Bradford Street.The western edge of the site is bounded by LombardStreet, a subservient road to Bradford Street andCheapside. The site itself is sloped, with an incline of

approximately 2.5 meters from west to east. Lombardstreet is of a similar level throughout, making itideal as the main entrance level for the proposeddevelopment.

To the north, west and south of the site (acrossBradford Street, Lombard Street and Cheapside,respectively) there is some light industrial use.

Adjacent to the site (east) is St Anne’s Church, alocally listed religious building, and its associatedbuildings. The Church has 2 rose windows on itswest elevation, facing the site. This is importantfor light penetration to the building. There are alsowindows facing the site from the Church’s adjoinedbuilding, a parochial house. This will make it a design

priority to minimise the amount of proposed windowsfacing this elevation from habitable rooms. The mainrose window will set the proposed building height, soas to not impede the long range view of the windowfrom the city centre.

Around the south east corner of the proposed siteare buildings of light industrial use. There are threesmall windows from one of these buildings, facingsouth onto the site. The proposed windows facingthis elevation will be required to be angled away, toprevent direct views from proposed dwellings intothe existing windows.

A noise report was produced by ENS Environmental

Noise Solutions Limited (ref:NIA/4589/13/4151/v1).The findings were as follows: The ambient noiseclimate is not considered to represent a constraint tothe proposed development of the application site.

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Constraints Plan


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14

St Annes Court - Contextual photographs - Immediate area

1 2 5

3 4 6

P h o t o g r a p h K e y7 8 9

1011 12

1314 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26


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15

St Annes Court - Contextual photographs - The Site

1

P h o t o g r a p h K e y

2 3 4

6 75

8

9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16 17 18


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16

Long Range View of Site

St Anne’s Church is visible from the raised platformadjacent to the Selfridges Building, The Bull Ring,location detailed below.

The lower portion of the church is already hidden•from view by existing buildings in front of it.If the proposed development is of a similar height•to adjacent industrial buildings any visual impact

on St Annes Church will be minimal.

Zoomed in portion of view below

Plan view of Long range view of St Anne’s Churchfrom Selfridges Building, Bull Ring

Long Range View of St Anne’s Church fromSelfridges Building, Bull Ring


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17

Long Range View of Site

St Anne’s Church is visible from the top of a multistorey car park, location detailed below.

The lower portion of the church is already hidden•from view by existing buildings in front of it.If the proposed development is of a similar height•to adjacent industrial buildings any visual impact

on St Annes Church will be minimal.

Zoomed in portion of view below

Plan view of Long range view of St Anne’s Churchfrom top of multi storey car park

Long Range View of St Anne’s Church from top ofDebenhams multi storey car park

Zoomed in portion of view adjacent


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Transport Pavement

Pedestrian Crossing Bus Stop Bus Lane Railway Line / Station Tunnel / Bridge Local Road Distributor Road Motorway On - Street Parking Off - Street Parking Traffic Calming Multi Storey Parking

Boundary Treatments

Trees Brick Shrubs Timber Lawn Concrete Walls Railings Gates

Kerb

Street Furniture Bollards Benches

Bins Public Art / Water Feature Cafe Seating / Awnings Street Lamps Signage

Materials Brick Cobbles Render Stone Concre te Tarmac Tin Concrete Iron Brick Zinc Setts Lead

Steel Metal (unknown) Glass Slate Timber

c h a r a c t e r a s s e s s m e n t

a r e a l o c a t i o n

r e l a t i o n s h i p t o s i t e p h o t o s:s t r e e t s c a p e a n a l y s i s:

Street name : Alcester StreetDevelopment name : Abacus

h e i g h t c o l o u r f o r ms c a l em o v e m e n tl a n d U s e

k e y a r c h i t e c t u r a l f e a t u r e s

p a t t e r n a n d g r a i n

Large Scale Development- Residential dwellings (majority)- Ground floor retail areas (minority)

single carriageway,suburban route. Mixedindustrial and residentialdevelopments arrangedalong road. Internal Court-yard for vehicle parking

7 storey block ofapartments at tallest, 5storey block of apart-ments at lowest.

Approximately 15m to21m to eaves.

Red/Brown Brickwork withfeature white/cream renderand feature grey powdercoated metal panels. greypowder coated metalbalconies and windows.

‘U-shaped’ building footprint with internal courtyard.Stepped flat roof.Elevations are stepped andmake use of balconies tobreak up the long facade.

Located 100m to the east of the proposed site, up an inclining

slope along Bradford street.

Apartments are arranged in a ‘U-shaped’ floor plan, with aninternal car park for vehicular parking. Where the exterior floorlevel inclines up the hill the apartments are staggered along theelevation, as can be seen in image B. Use of feature materialsand balconies is evident where they help to break up the long

street elevations.

Abacus is one of many new residential developments that havebeen built to the east of the proposed site.

Majority of the elevation is made up of red/brown brick, of asimilar appearance to the industrial brick buildings which formmost of the local vernacular. Architectural features includeelements of render, grey powder coated metal, grey powdercoated balconies, vertical and horizontal strips of flush greywindows.These treatments to the facades create a rhythm along the

streetscape.

An upper tier to the building is made entirely of grey powdercoated metal, which contrasts the rest of the building.

18

c h a r a c t e r d e s c r i p t i o n

Abacus development is bounded by Bradford Street, AlcesterStreet and Warwick Street; Bradford Street is a relatively mainroad through the middle of a mixed use residential and indus-trial area; Alcester and Warwick Street are less busy roads inthe same area. Residential character is enforced by the pres-ence of pedestrians and public transport links.

site location of character analysis

Image A Image B


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Transport

PavementPedestrian Crossing Bus Stop Bus Lane Railway Line / Station Tunnel / Bridge Local Road Distributor Road Motorway On - Street Parking Off - Street Parking Traffic Calming Multi Storey Parking

Boundary Treatments


Kerb








Street name: Bradford Street, CheapsideDevelopment name : Unknown


Large Scale Development- Residential dwellings (majority)- Ground floor retail areas (minority)


19site location of character analysis

Image A Image B

6 storey block ofapartments at tallest, 5storey block of apart-ments at lowest.

Approximately 18m to15m to eaves.

Red/Brown brickworkand white/cream render.Feature grey powdercoated metal panels onupper storeys. grey powdercoated metal windows.

Two facing ‘U-shaped’building foot prints withinternal courtyard. Steppedflat roof. Elevations arestepped to break up thelong facade.



Located 150m to the south east of the proposed site, up an

inclining slope along Bradford street. Alternatively 150m to thesouth east of the proposed site, up an inclining slope alongCheapside.

Apartments are arranged in two facing ‘U-shaped’ floor plans,with an internal car park for vehicular parking. Where the exteriorfloor level inclines up the h ill the apartments are staggeredalong the elevation, as can be seen in image A. Use of materialchanges in vertical strips is evident, assisting to break up the

long street elevations.

This is one of the larger of many new residential developmentsthat have been built to the east of the proposed site.

Elevation is made up of a mixture of red/brown brick, of a simi-lar appearance to the industrial brick buildings which form mostof the local vernacular, and white/cream render. These treat-ments to the facades create a rhythm along the streetscape.

Architectural features include inset grey powder coated metalwindows, some of which are feature corner windows that pro-

trude from the elevation.



This development is bounded by Bradford Street and Cheap-side; Bradford Street is a relatively main road through the middleof a mixed use residential and industrial area; Cheapside runsparallell to Bradford Streetand is a slightly less busy roads with amore dominant industrial feel. Residential character is enforcedby the presence of pedestrians and public transport links, par-ticulary on Bradford Street which is on a regualar bus route.


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Transport

PavementPedestrian Crossing Bus Stop Bus Lane Railway Line / Station Tunnel / Bridge Local Road Distributor Road Motorway On - Street Parking Off - Street Parking Traffic Calming Multi Storey Parking

Boundary Treatments


Kerb








h e i g h t c o l o u r f o r ms c a l el a n d U s e


Image A Image B

Street name: Bradford Street, CheapsideDevelopment name : Unknown

Large Scale Development- Residential dwellings


5 storey block ofapartments.

Approximately 15m toeaves

Red/Brown brickwork.Feature grey powdercoated metal balconies,and windows. Featureblue brick window cills andlintles. Feature buff brick.

Two rectangular buildingfoot prints with a joininginternal courtyard. Steppedflat roof. Elevations arestepped to break up thelong facade.

m o v e m e n t



Located 120m to the south east of the proposed site, up an

inclining slope along Bradford street. Alternatively 120m to thesouth east of the proposed site, up an inclining slope alongCheapside.

Apartments are arranged in two facing rectangular floorplans, with an internal car park for vehicular parking. Wherethe exterior floor level inclines up the hill the apartments arestaggered along the elevation, as can be seen in image A andB. Use of protruding vertical piers and recessed balconies isevident, assisting to break up the long street elevations. Withinthe recessed balconies is a material change to buff brick toaccentuate the recess and lighten the elevation.

This is one of many new residential developments that havebeen built to the east of the proposed site.

Elevation is made up a majority of red/brown brick, of a similarappearance to the industrial brick buildings which form most ofthe local vernacular.

There is a strong use of grey powder coated metal inset bal-conies and juliet balconies to break up the long facade. Thesefeatures are highlighted by material changes such as buffbrick within the inset balconies and blue brick window cills andlintels. The window and door material is white uPVC. The mainentrance doors off the street are painted in a range of coloursto give distinction between the different entrance points.



This development is bounded by Bradford Street and Cheap-side; Bradford Street is a relatively main road through the middleof a mixed use residential and industrial area; Cheapside runsparallell to Bradford Streetand is a slightly less busy roads with amore dominant industrial feel. Residential character is enforcedby the presence of pedestrians and public transport links, par-ticulary on Bradford Street which is along a regular bus route.


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Transport Pavement


Boundary Treatments


Kerb




Steel Glass Slate Timber





(A) is located 240m to the south east of the proposed sit, up an

inclining slope along Bradford Street.

(B) is directly adjacent to the scheme, across Lombard Street.

21site loc ation of charac ter an alysis

Image A Image B

A) Street name: Bradford StreetB) Street name: Bradford Street, Cheapside

Industrial Buildings single carriageway,suburban route. Mixedindustrial and residentialdevelopments arrangedalong road. On streetparking.

3 storey buildingswith some 4/5 storeyfeatures

Approximately 12m (3storey) to 20m (5 storey)to Eaves.

Red/Brown brickwork.Large industrial windows.

Flat roof. Very long facadeswith regular pattern createdby windows.



These industrial Buildings have relatively thin floor plans, whichmake use of larger open courtyards enclosed by the buildings.

Rather than stepping the facade where there is a changein level, as is the prominent style for nearby residentialdevelopments, these industrial buildings have expansiveelevations with regular pattern created by windows which areall of the same level. Some relief from the flat facade is given bysome brick pattering details, and some use of white lintels for

material change.

Elevation is made up a majority of red/brown brick, in keepingwith the local vernacu lar.

Large windows are set out in a regular pattern on theelevations..


A is bounded by Bradford Street; B is bounded by BradfordStreet, Lombard Street, Cheapside and Birchall Street

Bradford Street is a relatively main road through the middle ofa mixed use residential and industrial area; Cheapside runsparallell to Bradford Street and is a slightly less busy roadswith a more dominant industrial feel; Lombard Street and Bir-chall Street are both subservient roads and as a result moresheltered from traffic.


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Transport Pavement


Boundary Treatments


Kerb




Steel Glass Slate Timber






Image A Image B

Street name: Bradford Street, AlcesterStreet

Religious Building, Adjoinedresidential building for employ-ees of the Church.

single carriageway,suburban route. Mixedindustrial and residentialdevelopments arrangedalong road. On streetparking.

Large church withspire.3 storey residentialbuilding.

Approximately 22m toridge of main churchbuilding, approx 16.5mto eaves of main churchbuilding

Red/Brown brickwork, slatepitched rood. features ofblue brick pattern, stonecills, lintels and other items,stained glass windows.

Church has rectangular footprint,with staggered pitched roof, gabledend and one corner spire. Adjoinedhouse is rectangular footprint withpitched roof (mixed gabled andhipped) and chimneys

Located directly adjacent to the proposed site



This church is a locally listed building, with two high level rosewindows facing the proposed site, one large, one smaller. Although these are only used for light penetration to the churchand not for views out of the building.

The church has gothic features such as the steep pitch of theroof, gothic arches over the elongated windows and doors,including a highly decorative spire on the south east corner ofthe church. Large windows are set out in a regular pattern onthe side elevations, which are broken up by an additional lean-to pitched roof. End elevations are gabled and contain manydecorative features such as large gothic stained glass windowstypical of Church facades.

The Adjoining House has pitched roofs (mixed hipped andgabled). On its west facing elevation there are some windowsthat look onto the proposed site, however for the ground floorwindows this view is blocked entirely by an existing brick wall.

Elevation is made up a majority of red/brown brick, in keepingwith the local vernacular. Other materials such as blue brick,stone and slate feature to create decorative patterns and fea-tures on the building.

Due to many extensions in these buildings’ history the footprintis very haphazard, particularly on the northeastern portion.

.c h a r a c t e r d e s c r i p t i o n

This site is bounded by Bradford Street and Alcester Street.

Bradford Street is a relatively main road through the middle ofa mixed use residential and industrial area; The church has alarge gothic rose window which faces an existing residentialdevelopment across Alcester Street. On the southern aspectthe church windows overlook light industrial warehouses andstorage units. On the northern aspect the church and adjoin-ing building overlook an industrial warehouse across BradfordStreet. To the West, both overlook the proposed site.


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Noise Impact Assessment

A noise impact assessment has been undertaken byENS, Environmental Noise Solutions Limited. The con-clusions of this assessment are as follows:

Ambient noise levels varied across the application site,with road traffic noise considered to be the dominantnoise source throughout the majority of the survey.Noise levels at Lombard Street and Cheapside weresignificantly lower than at Bradford Street, which isconsidered to be a relatively busy highway, providingaccess into the centre of Birmingham. In general, noiselevels are significantly lower during the night time fromthose measured during the daytime.

The recycling centre located across Lombard Streetoperates throughout the night. Although activity asso-ciated with the development (distant reversing alarmsand impacts) was at times faintly audible during thenight time survey, it was considered to be very low leveland did not have any impact on ambient noise levelsmeasured on site.

Measurements undertaken at the south east corner

of the site assessed the noise impact of the adjacentwireworks. Whilst the roller shutter door was closed,it was considered that noise associated with the wire-works is at least 10 dB below the existing ambient noiselevel, when measured at the application site. Noise lev-els measured with the roller shutter door open wereslightly higher, with levels of 2 dB below the averagedexisting ambient noise level in this location (i.e. in theabsence of commercial/industrial nosie).

In conclusion: The ambient noise climate across theapplication site is due to local road traffic on the sur-rounding roads with occasional (but not significant)noise associated with surrounding commercial/indus-trial premises (primarily Cameron Robb Wireworks).

An indicative scheme of sound insulation works hasbeen developed to protect the proposed developmentfrom the ambient noise climate in accordance withthe requirements of the new National Planning PolicyFramework, please refer to ENS’s Noise Impact As-sessment for details. On this basis, the ambient noiseclimate is not considered to represent a constraint tothe proposed development of the application site.

Please refer to Noise Impact AssessmentDocument for more details

Foul Water & Utilities Statement

A Foul Water & Utilities Statement has been preparedby BWB Consulting Limited (BWB). Its purpose is todescribe the locations of existing utilities apparatus inthe vicinity of the site and to provide an account on theviability of servicing the proposed development withsuitable mains services infrastructure. The assess-ment also considers whether any services diversions

are likely to be required as a consequence of the de-velopment proposals.

The conclusions of this assessment are as follows:

The existing site surrounds appear to be well served bythe main utility services.

From the information readily available at the time ofpreparing this report, the provision of new supplies toserve the proposed development should not be prob-lematical. Correspondence received to date has con-firmed that the development can be supplied withoutthe need of reinforcements.

Foul water drainage from the developed site is antici-

pated to discharge directly to the existing seweragenetwork via a gravity connection.

Services diversions may be required to facilitate theproposed site access arrangements.

Please refer to Foul Water and UtilitiesStatement Document for more details

Air Quality Assessment

An Air Quality Assessment has been prepared byBureau Veritas.


It is anticipated that without suitable control meas-ures, the construction and demolition activities asso-ciated with the proposed development could result innuisance dust and PM10 emissions as there are re-ceptors within 200m of the site. A number of mitiga-tion measures have therefore been recommended tominimise impacts during the construction phase of thedevelopment, please refer to Bureau Veritas’ Air Qual-ity Assessment for details. Provided these mitigationmeasures are implemented, generation of dust andPM10 emissions will be minimised.

The predicted annual mean results for the baseline year2013 show no exceedences of the annual mean objec-tives for PM10 and NO2. The short-term objectives forboth pollutants are also unlikely to be exceeded.

The impact of the new development is predicted to be

‘Negligible’ at sites of relevant public exposure as in-creases in pollutant concentrations are predicted to be‘Imperceptible’ in magnitude.

In July 2014, a technical addendum was produced inresponse to concerns raised by Environmental Officer,Gerg Jambor (BCC)

The comments have been addressed and the mainconclusion from the technical addendum is that thedevelopment site is still considered to be suitable forthe proposed residential use.

Please refer to Air Quality AssessmentDocument and addendum for more details


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Transport Statement

A transport statement was originally prepared by MottMacdonald as part of the evolution of the project. Thiswas revised in July 2014.

The findings of the report are summarised as follows:

- The proposed development is for 170 residentialapartments and a small 274 sq m gross internal area A1 retail unit on the St Ann es, Digbeth site- The proposed development complies with nationaland local planning policy- It is proposed that the access to the development willbe off Cheapside- The site is connected to the local area by frequentbus and rail services. It is also located within anextensive cycle and pedestrian network- The site has extant planning permission for a majordevelopment. The redevelopment of the site forresidential will result in a much lower impact, andtherefore, no transport mitigation measures would berequired as part of the development

Conclusion: This Transport Statement demonstrates

that there are no transport or highway reasons whyplanning permission should not be granted for theresidential apartment development.

Please refer to Transport Statement Documentfor more details.

Environmental Risk Survey

Tier Environmental was commissioned by Grange Se-curities Ltd to undertake a Phase I Preliminary Risk As-sessment of land at St Anne’s Court, Lombard Street,Birmingham, B12 0PH. The purpose of the investiga-tion was to determine the potential risk to receptorswith regard to any legacy contaminated land issues atthe site.

Site history: The site has been developed since at least1888 with residential buildings and a number of facto-ries which appear to be metal work related; however,the site has been cleared since at least 2012. Resi-dential buildings may have had basements which mayhave been infilled.

Probable Ground conditions: The site is considered tobe underlain by varying depths of Made Ground andMercia Mudstone.

Ground stability: Mercia Mudstone can have a variableweathering profile.

Sulphate Risk: Mercia Mudstone and may provide an

aggressive environment to buried concrete structures.

Potential Soil and Groundwater Contamination: Thesite has had a long industrial history, prior to which itwas used for residential terraced housing. Given theunderlying geology, it is considered likely that thesehouses would have had basements which would havebeen infilled during the development of the commercialbuildings. In addition, the metal working and printinghistory of the site suggests that localised TPH hotspotsmay be present around the site.

Potential for Gas Protection: Potential on and offsitesources of ground gas are present.

Further works: It is recommended that a Phase II In-trusive site investigation is undertaken across the siteto determine the risks to end users, the nearby Sec-ondary A Aquifer and to determine the abnormal costswhich have been identified in this report.

Please refer to Environmental Risk SurveyDocument for more details.

Drainage Statement

A drainage statement was produced by THDA to besubmitted in tandem with the application.


The drainage of the site utilising permeable principlesand construction types is wholly viable for the pro-posed development on the following basis:-This Proposed Drainage Catchments drawing 100given at Appendix D has been prepared in accordancewith best practice guidance preferred by both the plan-ning authority and local Water Company.

Environment Agency Flood Zone mapping shows theproposed site to be located entirely within Flood Zone1, which is suitable for all types of development use.

No other forms of flooding have been identified whichwould present a significant flood risk to the proposeddevelopment.

The existing site comprises three different areas, anarea consisting of bituminous surface, which would

be redeveloped for residential areas. Some other partscomprise concrete slabs which are quiet deteriorated.Finally the third part is formed by greenfield area. Con-crete and greenfield zone would be redeveloped forresidential and car parking area.

The calculations undertaken along with accompany-ing catchment information demonstrates that a viabledrainage strategy can be utilised to serve the site.

Please refer to the Drainage StatementDocument for more details.


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Site Opportunities

After analysing the constraints a number ofopportunities for development become apparent.

The presence of a prominent rose window on the•adjacent church provides the opportunity to wrapthe potential build zone of the proposed buildingaround an internal courtyard. This ‘perimeterdevelopment’ technique prevents any largemass of building obstructing the light path intothe rose window, see image below, or detractingfrom the massing of the church.This courtyard presents the opportunity to use•the space as a parking and bike storage facility,which will have excellent natural surveillancefrom residents.Bradford street has a high level of traffic through•fare, making it unsuited for the main vehicleaccess point to the site. Cheapside has the widthto be able to facilitate additional traffic and is lessbusy than Bradford street, making it the idealaccess point to the internal car park.There is an existing entrance point on the south•east corner of the site, providing an excellent

opportunity to use this as the proposed vehicleentrance point off Cheapside, shown by the largepink arrow.Lombard Street is too narrow to be considered•for the main vehicle access point, however thisdoes present the opportunity to use this roadfor pedestrian access points. This is particularlyideal as the street is relatively level. Additionalpedestrian access is given on Bradford Streetand Cheapside.The site’s proximity to the city centre presents•the opportunity to create focal entrance points tothe building. These can be highlighted by colour,mass, form or architectural feature.

Opportunities Plan Proposed Section showing courtyard designprotecting the light ingress into the church


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Existing Site Elevations

E x i s t i n g S i t e E l e v a t i o n - V i e w f r o m C h e a p s i d e n o t t o s c a l e

E x i s t i n g S i t e E l e v a t i o n - V i e w f r o m B r a d f o r d S t r e e t n o t t o s c a l e

E x i s t i n g S i t e E l e v a t i o n - V i e w f r o m L o m b a r d S t r e e t n o t t o s c a l e


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SECTION B:LOCAL AUTHORITYCONSULTATION

local authority consultation

The site was last subject to an approved outline planningapplication (reference 2011/00738/PA). This approval isdated: 06th May 2011 and is described as ‘Application foroutline consent to determine layout, access and s cale fora mixed use development comprising 3* and 4* hotels,a conference centre, retail and office accommodationand associated multi storey car park..’

As shown on the images opposite the previousapplication concerned the land on St Annes Court aswell as a large area across Lombard Street. The fullplanning application that is supported by this design &access statement is for the land in St Annes Court only.The red dotted line on the elevations to the left indicate

the location of the proposed development for which thisapplication is concerned, compared to the previouslyapproved development shown in blue.

Before this application was submitted there wereconsultations with the local planning authority, whichalong with correspondence regarding the previousapproval, resulted in amendments to the final proposal.Further to the previous approach (ref: 2011/00738/PA)various conversations were had with the local authoritybefore residential use was considered. There has beencorrespondence with Joanne Todd, Principal PlanningOfficer of the city centre team at Birmingham City CouncilPlanning Authority.

Ms Todd considered the proposal against relevant local

and national planning policies and made comments thatcan be seen in the column to the right.

Comments made by Ms Todd:

Previous Planning Permission:- The site is part of a wider site which gained planningpermission for a mixed use development to includehotels, conferencing, commercial and car parkingspace.- The proposed site (to which this design and accessstatement refers) was to provide a multi storey car parkalong with some commercial ground floor units and officespace fronting Bradford Street in the original approvedplanning application.

- The original consent does not expire until May 2014and consideration therefore needs to be given to howany approval on this site may subsequently impact onthe existing live permission.

Proposed Planning Permission:- The proposed residential use in this location is likely tobe acceptable in principle.- The studio apartments were not considered toprovide good quality accommodation. A better mix wassuggested by Ms Todd: to include more larger units.- The scale, design and massing of any proposal on thissite will be critical to an applications success, includingits relationship with surrounding buildings and theadjacent locally listed St Anne’s Church.

- The ‘interaction’ of the ground floor with the surro undingstreets will be critical, particularly to Bradford Street.- There are a number of commercial/industrial useswithin the vicinity, particularly along Cheapside, a noiseassessment will therefore be required to demonstratethat there would be no harm to future occupiers ofresidential accommodation in this location.- Flooding: this site falls outside flood zone 2 and 3 anda flood risk assessment is not required as the site beingdeveloped is less than a hectare.- It was noted this site is currently va cant and an extendedphase 1 habitat survey may well not be required - howeverMs Todd has not been to site.- S106 - such an application would generate the need forcontributions to include affordable housing (at 35% seeUDP policy 5.37A-G), public open space, contributions

to public transport and ‘wayfinder’ (a scheme to signpostroutes within the City Centre). Dependent on the finalmix of the scheme a contribution towards education maybe required.

Comments expressed here represent an informal officerview only. They are given without prejudice to any formaldecision that the City Council as Local Planning Authoritymay make on a planning application.

Elevations of Previously Approved Planning Application

Location Plan of Existing Approved Planning Application


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Pre-applicationDesign : Light Ingress

Constraints

- Large site footprint therefore danger of creatingapartments with little or no light ingress in centre ofbuilding, see plan to left labelled ‘no courtyard’.

- Need for communal space for car parking, bikestorage and bin storage facilities.- St Anne’s Church, a locally listed buildin g, is adjacentto the proposed site and has prominent rose windows.It is important that any new structure noes not obstructlight to this existing window.

Opportunities

After analysing the constraints it is evident that byslimming down the footprint of the proposed buildingthere will be a considerably greater proportion of lightingress to the building. This solution also provides foran internal courtyard area that can be used for carparking and other communal facilities.

Designing the proposed footprint in a ‘U’ shapeallows the building to be wrapped around the areadirectly adjacent to St Anne’s rose window, thereforepreventing the obstruction of light there.

Light ingress diagrams

SECTION C: PRE-APPLICATION DESIGN DEVELOPMENT


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Pre-application Design :Ease of Access, Scale,Window Locations

Ease of Access

Pedestrian access should be made available from all street sideelevations as well as from the internal courtyard, in the case ofresidents accessing the site via a vehicle. The location of these accesspoints are dictated by maximising the ease of access into the buildingarriving from any direction - corners of the building are seen to be mostefficient.

Circulation cores containing stairwells, lifts and refuge areas are to bedispersed around the building footprint in order that they are easilyaccessible from building entrance points and also are to be positionedin logical locations so that travelling distances are minimized whereverpossible.

Corridors should be designed to roughly follow the path within thebuilding where there is the least natural light ingress, please refer tothe ‘courtyard’ plan on previous page. This is in order that apartments

can be placed on either side of this corridor and take advantage ofbetter light ingress.

Scale

The proposed development should match the proportions of the largescale surrounding industrial buildings. It may be beneficial to reducethe scale of the proposed building in places directly adjacent to thechurch. The highest point of the proposed building should not exceedthe eaves level of the existing church.

In the scheme designed to present to the local authority for pre-appadvice the highest points of the scheme were six storeys, roughly levelwith the church eaves. The elevations were stepped down to become3 storeys high when directly adjacent to the Church.

Window locations:

The proposed building should be designed to have no windowsfrom habitable rooms directly facing windows of habitable rooms inexisting buildings. The location of existing windows are indicated inthe ‘window locations’ diagram opposite. Where possible, proposedwindows should be set at least 21m apart from existing windows,where this is not possible the following design options are available:Use of oriel windows to direct the view away from existing habitableroom windows, no habitable room windows to be designed into thescheme in certain locations.

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Design progression diagrams


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Pre-applicationDesign : ProminentBuilding Corners

Opportunities

Due to the site’s proximity to the city centre, there is aunique opportunity to make a feature of the corners ofthe site that are highlighted in the plan titles ‘prominentlocation’ to the left. There are a number of designoptions available to make the prominent corners moreeye catching: changes in building mass, framing thecorners with an eye catching material, changes inbuilding material, architectural corner feature that isalso evident in nearby adjacent buildings, etc.

Massing

Attention can be drawn to the prominent cornersby making them of a larger building mass than theremainder of the building. This option is explored inthe ‘Massing’ diagram opposite.

Framing Effect

Another technique to draw attention to the prominentcorners could be to ‘frame’ them, using coloured ‘fins’.The framing effect created by these fins are exploredto the left in the ‘Framing Effect’ diagrams.

Industrial Corner Feature

A technique that is already in use in the digbeth ar eais to chamfer the building corners and have a greaterdepth of brick detail within that architectural feature.To modernise this technique perhaps the chamferedcorner could be infilled with an interesting material,or a large glazed infill, or perhaps large windows witha dynamic shading device. Opposite are pictures ofwhere chamfered corners are already in use within thedigbeth area.

Design progression diagrams


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Pre-applicationDesign : ElevationDevelopment

Constraints

- The site is sloped, with an incline of approximately2.5m from west to east. Lombard Street is relativelylevel, however the elevations on both Cheapside andBradford Street will be affected by this slope.- The elevations are very long, due to the size ofthe proposed development. This could cause theelevations to become monotonous.

Sloped Site

If the floor level was to be level throughout the building,many windows on the ground floor would becomesubmerged as a result, as highlighted in red on the‘sloped site’ diagram opposite. One possible solutionto this is to step the floor level, which may also providea method of making the long elevations less regular

and monotonous in the envelope opening pattern.

Prominent Entrance Points

In order to make the proposed scheme more legible,various techniques could be utilised to draw attentionto the building entrance points. In the scheme designprepared for pre-application advice with the localauthority this was done in the following way: slightlyraising the roof level used in conjunction with a changein building material and use of a prominent windowabove the entrance way.Other possible methods could include: alter thefootprint of the building so that it is either recessedor projected at entrance points, expression of the

circulation core elevationally, change of buildingmaterial.

Elevation Development

Prominent features on the elevation, which take theshape of vertical strips of balconies and also blockchanges in material, can be used to raise the interestof the elevations. In the scheme design preparedfor pre-application advice with the local authority apattern of differing facade materials was used, asdiagrammatically indicated opposite.

Elevation design development diagrams


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Pre-applicationProposed

Schemenot to scale

The images opposite show theproposed site plan and proposed

elevations when issued to thelocal authority for pre-applicationadvice.

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SECTION D:LOCAL AUTHORITY PRE-

APPLICATION ADVICE SESSION

local authority consultationPre-application advice was sought from Birmingham CityCouncil on the 18th November 2013. Nicholas Jacksonand Simon Delahunty-Forest’s advice is summarisedbelow.

Main Points:- Bringing Lombard Street elevation to be flush with theroad, would be more appropriate as that would followthe historical building line, pushed to back of pavement,

a feature that is typical to the Diglis area.- A simpler façade would be preferable to the originalscheme. Way this could be achieved include: - Simpler material palette. - Less ‘patchwork façade of material

changes, opt for physical reliefs instead. - Balconies with ‘legs’ are not favoured. - The colour green is to be avoided.- It was recommended to refer to the surroundingindustrial buildings (which are robust, effective, standthe test of time) for design inspiration, rather than fromthe existing large scale residential developments, whichare not as favoured by the planning authority.- It was thought that the proposed six storey building wasnot matching in scale to its setting. Five storeys ratherthan six is preferred.- ‘Stepped’ elevations (Bradford st and cheapside) arenot favoured by planning Authority, it was advised to optfor a simpler massing instead.- Internal changes suggested included omitting anybedrooms that were windowless, and decreasing theproportion of studio apartments compared to normalapartments.- It was recommended to carry out research on the visualimpact the proposed development may have on po tentiallong range views of St Anne’s Church Rose Window.- Additional access doors to the building would befavourable in the following locations: - Half way along Lombard Street. - Within the central parking courtyard- It would be preferable for excess ramping to be

minimized where possible.- It was recommended that expressing the circulationcores elevationally would increase the legibility of thebuilding and highlight the entrances to the building.- Roof Terraces would be an interesting option to lookinto.

Comments continued to be received until the point ofsubmission. Where possible, these were always takenon board.

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Final Design : ElevationDevelopment

Changes advised during Pre-application Advice

- A simpler façade would be preferable to the original scheme.

- Constrain building height to Five storeys rather than six.- ‘Stepped’ elevations (Bradford st and cheapside) are

not favoured by planning Authority, it was advised toopt for a simpler massing instead.- Excess ramping to be minimised where possible.- Expressing the circulation cores elevationally would

increase the legibility of the building and highlight theentrances to the building.

See diagram opposite for evidence of how the aboveadvice has influenced the final design.

Sloped Site and Level Access

The site is sloped, with an incline of approximately2.5m from west to east. The elevations on bothCheapside and Bradford Street will be affected bythis slope. To gain level access throughout, someinternal level changes will be required, which will beexpressed elevationally. Levels across the site havebeen carefully considered to minimise the number ofinternal floor slab level changes, number of accessramps required and to make the proposal as easilyaccessible as possible.

Circulation Cores

Expressing the circulation cores elevationally increasesthe legibility of the scheme and creates elevationalintrigue.

Floor to ceiling Reglit glazing is to allow a partiallyobscured view of the stair core from the street. Thecirculation cores are to be set back from the remainingbuilding line, at back of pavement, which will provideshelter to residents as well as subtly highlight thebuilding entrance points by use of shadows.

Elevation design development diagrams

SECTION E: FINAL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT


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Effect of proposal onlong range views of St

Anne’s Church RoseWindow


- It was recommended to carry out research on thevisual impact the proposed development may have on

potential long range views of St Anne’s Church RoseWindow.

Effect of proposed development on LongRange View

By restricting the proposed development to fivestoreys high, the long range view of St Anne’s ChurchRose window will not be greatly impaired, as illustratedby the sketches opposite.

The proposed roof height is roughly the same heightas the industrial building that can be seen in theforeground of both images to the left, see proposedelevation below, which already obscures the lowerportion of St Anne’s Church from view.

In addition, St Anne’s Church rose window is onlyvisible from very select locations across the city thatare raised high enough above the existing buildingsof Digbeth, therefore can often only be viewed fromlocations so far away that it is already difficult to seethe window with the naked eye.

diagrams of how proposed development wouldinteract with existing rose window

Long range view of proposed site,viewed from raised area adjacent to Selfr idges

diagrams of how proposed development wouldinteract with existing rose window

Long range view of proposed site,viewed from top of multi-storey car park

proposed elevation - showing height relationshipbetween proposed building and existing industrialbuilding adjacent.


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Final Design : MaterialPalette


- A simpler façade would be preferable to the original scheme.

- Refer to the surrounding industrial buildings (which are robust, effective, stand the test of time) for design inspiration, rather than from the existing large scale residential developments.


Industrial Influence

Digbeth has a strong industrial heritage, which hasdirectly influenced the proposed material paletteselection.

Digbeth’s industrial buildings typically are a dark redbrick, with blue brick features. As a modern take onthe industrial material palette it is proposed to have theentire building’s external material to be a blue brick;features such as windows and circulation cores willbe highlighted with contrasting, yet complimenting,modern style materials, as detailed below.

Other building in Birmingham that have taken similarindustrial inspiration in a contemporary way includethe bloc hotel, the crocodile works, southside andatwood green.

Proposed Material Palette

The proposed material palette is predominantly bluebrick facade, highlighted with metalic amber colouredwindow spandrels and cedar balcony features tointroduce diversity and intrigue to the facade. Amethystreglit glazing will feature in the circulation cores.

Sketch proposal granite blue brick

Material Precedents

amber trespameteon panel

reglit amethystglazing

RAL 7031 window / door frames

western red cedartimber (new)

western red cedartimber (aged)


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Industrial Rhythm of Area

There is a strong industrial heritage in Digbeth,reflected clearly in it’s architecture.

The strong horizontal and vertical linear patterns thatform part of the local industrial vernacular are indicatedin the diagrams to the left

Common Architectural Features:

Large window openings in regimented patterns•Pier like protrusions from the building give the•elevations a strong vertical presence. Alsoprevents the long elevations becoming too ‘flat’by giving them a 3D relief element.Typically the buildings have largely proportioned•floor to ceiling measurements, therefore all thebuildings even though predominantly 3/4 storeyshigh are much taller than conventional buildingsof this number of storeys.Dark red brick is very common in the area, with•elements of blue brick on lower levels and tohighlight feature aspects,Soldier Courses over windows are common.•Horizontal Banding is common, often in an•

alternative material to the red brick main walls.Buildings typically follow a line that is directly•adjacent to the pavement.

Images of industrial buildings within Digbeth


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Final Design : ElevationDevelopmentChanges advised during Pre-application Advice

- Refer to the surrounding industrial buildings (which are robust, effective, stand the test of time) for design inspiration, rather than from the existing large scale

residential developments.


Industrial Influence

Industrial /buildings within the Digbeth area boasta very simple material palette of red and blue brick.To prevent their elevations from being monotonous,the surrounding buildings have used the followingtechniques:- strong vertical elements in the form of brick pilastersbreak up long elevations, casting subtle shadowswhich add a three dimensional aspect of the facades.

- large window components which are set out in strongvertical and horizontal lines. This regimented pattern isvery functional to the industrial use of the building -casting the largest possible amount of light into thespaces within.

The above techniques have been utilised within theproposed scheme, as shown to the left.

Elevational evolution

As part of the ongoing diccussions with the localauthority, the design continued to evolve up until thepoint of submission.

The glazed staircores were amended to take thewindow module (shown to the left) into the width ofthe glazed plank syatem. This offeried a better levelof punctuation and improved the ledgebility of theentrances

The Bradford Street elevation was also amended tocreate a physical gap between the proposal and theadjacent priests accomodation, which also offersviews toward the rose window from the street.

See pages 43-45 for the submitted elevations.

large window modules are set out in industrial rhythym

brick pilasters create subtle shadows that fits with the rhythmic industrial typology of Digbeth


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Final Design : Site PlanDevelopment


- Bringing Lombard Street elevation to be flush withthe road, would be more appropriate as that would

follow the historical building line, pushed to back of pavement, a feature that is typical to the Diglis area.- Additional access doors to the building would befavourable in the following locations: - Half way along Lombard Street. - Within the central parking courtyard- Excess ramping to be minimised where possible.- Expressing the circulation cores elevationally would

increase the legibility of the building and highlight theentrances to the building.


Ease of Access- The levels of the proposed scheme have beencarefully considered in order that there is now levelaccess throughout, with minimal ramping required.- Pedestrian access points have been generallyincreased in number, as well as placing them in moreintuitive locations - ie directly across from circulationcores.- Additional stair cores have been incorporated intothe scheme to allow for the scheme to have greaterescape capacity in the case of an emergency.- The vehicle access point remains as proposed in thepre-application design.

Building Footprint

By following the local authority’s advice to follow thehistoric building line of Lombard street the schemehas been able to offer a more generous parking court,which has been dispersed with pockets of planting.

Site plan design development diagrams


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Final Design : BalconydevelopmentProjecting Balconies

Due to the size of lombard street elevation and thequiet and enclosed nature of Lombard street itself, themain views of this elevation will be seen by passers bywhen walking either along bradford street or cheapside

when walking past lombard street.

This presents an opportunity to take advantage ofthese passing glances, by creating balconies thatproject away from the building and add a threedimensional aspect to the elevation.

Balcony Design Development

Ongoing discussions were had with the local authorityafter the initial pre-application advice session. One ofthe topics under question were the detailed design ofthe proposed balconies. Many sketch options, someof which are shown opposite, were made out for theplanner’s comment, until the current scheme was

agreed upon.

Balcony Pattern Making

To break up the long elevations, the balconies havebeen arranged in a seemingly random pattern tointroduce some diversity to the scheme.

Other methods of creating this diversity include therandom patterns of window spandrels.

regimented industrial rhythm of facade is broken up by use of seemingly random balconies

sketch design development - balcony details (wider than window opening, inset within window opening, no balcony)


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final design

This page describes the final proposed design, interms of: use, layout, amount, scale, landscaping,access and sustainability.

Use

This proposal is for 170 dwellings at a site

bounded by Bradford Street, Lombard Street andCheapside in Digbeth, Birmingham.

The proposed use on the site is residential. This willbe a mixture of 1 & 2 bed dwellings. A 275 sq.m retailunit has also been incorporated on the ground floor

Design Development

Changes were made following advice during the pre-application process. This had a significant impact onthe original proposal.

Following a thorough pre-application process, theproposals have changed significantly. The footprint

was modified to mirror the historic ‘back of pavement’developments in the area, as well as adapting theelevations to better reflect the strong industrialheritage of Digbeth. Following the historic building lineof Lombard street, as well as careful considerationof site levels to create an easily accessible schemewithout excessive ramping was also an important partof the design process.

Other considerations were the general decreasingof height of the entire scheme to five storeys, andthe preference away from ‘stepped’ elevations for acleaner and more simple building massing.

Scale

The proposal is 5 storeys high throughout, with theexception of a small portion of the building directlyadjacent to the church house on Bradford streetelevation; this portion is simply the height of theexisting wall to allow a good distance to the habitablerooms of the church accomodation. It houses refuseand bicycle storage. Elsewhere, some ‘stepping’

is required, to take into account the uniquetopographical conditions, however it has beenminimised as much as possible

Layout

The ‘perimeter development’ building footprint

with an internal void for vehicular parking hasremained the most effective layout, as set out inthe pre-application design stage for the followingreasons:- allow for light to access the church rose window.- allows for natural light ingress to dwellingsthroughout the scheme.- allow for natural surveillance by residents of theinterior courtyard- a stand off from the existing churchaccommodation.

The vehicular access point remains on Cheapsideas proposed in the pre-application advice design,in accordance with advice from Mott Macdonald:- Cheapside has considerably lower throughtraffic levels than Bradford Street, therefore it wasdeemed to have less impact on existing trafficconditions to create the vehicular access point tothe site from Cheapside.

The incline of slope on the site requires levelchanges within the building, in order that theground floor has the best possible access to lightand level access is made available throughout allentrance points.

Pedestrian access points are made obviousto passers-by by the circulation cores that areexpressed elevationally and recessed back fromthe main facade. A greater number of pedestrian

access points have been provided within theparking courtyard and are positioned in logicallocations in order to make access as easy aspossible.

Amount

The application proposes that 170 residential units

and one 275 sqm retail unit are to be built on thesite (site area of 4,824 sqm or 2.9 acres).

Gross internal area of the proposed developmentover all floors is approximately 9,961 sqm.

Landscaping

Rear hard landscaped courtyard, interspersedwith planters, breaking up the parking spaces..

Access

Direct vehicle access is off Cheapside in thesouth east corner of the site. This access pointleads to the internal courtyard, from which thereare pedestrian access points into the building,sheltered refuse storage areas and shelteredbicycle storage areas.

Direct pedestrian access can be gained fromTwo locations on lombard street, equidistantfrom street corners. Additionally, access can begained from Cheapside, Bradford Street andmultiple points within the internal courtyard. Allpedestrian access points are level access pointsto assist the less mobile.

57 car parking spaces will be provided within thecourtyard, 2 of which will be of larger proportionsto accommodate disabled car parking spaces.170 bicycle parking spaces will be providedin enclosed areas that are sheltered from theelements.

Sustainability

As a city centre development, the proposal isinherently sustainable. The site is within a veryshort distance from a range of amenities, as wellas the proposed being on a brown field site.

Recommendations have been made in thedrainage statement to implement Sustainableurban Drainage Systems (SuDS).


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P r o p o s e d G r o u n d F l o o r P l a n n o t t o s c a l e

Final designproposed groundfloor plannot to scale

The image opposite shows the proposedsite plan.


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Proposed Site Elevationsnot to scale

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st annes court - compressed

Documents