Plan for flats to replace offices near to central Reading
An investment company want to demolish office complex near to the station
MORE than 500 new homes could be built in Reading as an investment company has submitted a plan to replace town centre offices.
Peveril Securities, an investment and development company, wants to replace the Napier Court office buildings in Napier Road with apartments.
Napier Court is located opposite Kings Meadow, and is near the massive Thames Quarter apartment complex, the station, and the Tesco Extra.
The site consists of three two-storey brick office buildings.
Peveril Securities wants to knock these down and replace them with two buildings containing a total of 570 apartments.
The development would be made up of 296 two-beds, 208 one-bed, 56 three-bed and 10 studio flats, which would be contained within one 11-storey and one 10-storey apartment block.
Due to the site’s proximity to the town centre, 58 car parking spaces are proposed for the development, along with four car club spaces and cycle storage space for around 283 bicycles.
The applicant’s planning agents Carney Sweeney said:
“The proposal includes ancillary facilities for residents at ground floor providing an active frontage at street level, with further provision within a mezzanine level.
“The amenity provision includes a resident’s lounge; gym; workspace; cinema; private dining and games area.
“The proposal also includes for a rooftop garden and terrace for residents.”
The site has been identified for residential development in the Reading Local Plan 2019, in policy CR11i.
However, the policy gives an ‘indicative capacity’ of 210-310 homes, well under the 570 proposed by Peveril Securities.
The council has stipulated that any development must also avoid detrimental impact on River Thames, as the site is not far away from the river and the Thames Lido, which is a Grade II listed building.
The policy also mentions that any development would have to be sensitive to prospective Network Rail depot and council plans for the East Reading Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) route.
The MRT scheme was meant to establish a bus lane and active travel route adjacent to Napier Road bringing people from a park and ride at Thames Valley Park to the town centre.
But the council’s plans for the MRT were defeated as Wokingham Borough Council refused its application to establish a bridge over the Kennet Mouth, which falls within its jurisdiction.
You can view the application by typing reference 231263 into the council’s planning portal.