Horsefair Flats: Four 1960s apartment blocks in Pontefract town centre set to be demolished
They'll be replaced with new housing
Plans have been approved to demolish blocks of flats in Pontefract town centre which date back to the 1960s.
Wakefield Council has given the go ahead for the five-storey buildings, which form part of the Horsefair Flats complex, to be bulldozed.
Wakefield District Housing (WDH) submitted an application to knock down Violet Pritchard House, Silkstone House, Francis Lane House and Warren House in December last year.
The social housing provider plans to replace the buildings with new housing projects, according to documents submitted to the local authority.
A heritage statement said the buildings are within the Pontefract Castle conservation area and are less than 300m from the medieval monument.
It said: “The buildings currently occupying the site make a negative contribution to the setting and the proposed demolition would be a minor enhancement”.
The council’s conservation officer said: “The scale and form of the flats abruptly contrasts with the historic context of the area, and in particular undermines the significance of the castle”.
The flats are currently vacant after former residents were housed elsewhere.
The demolition phase is expected to take around 40 weeks to complete.
The site will then be grassed over until redevelopment occurs.
WDH said it intends to submit a separate planning application for a new housing project on the land.
Approving the proposals, a planning officer’s report said: “The flats form part of a wider residential area known locally as ‘Horsefair Flats’.
“It is understood they were constructed in the mid 1960s for the purpose of public housing.
“Since their original construction, pitched roofs were added in the 1990s and a number of windows and doors have been replaced with a variety of styles.
“It is therefore considered that the buildings that currently standing do not reflect the original architectural intention of these buildings.
“It is accepted that the buildings in question contribute little from a visual perspective to the local area and the demolition of these, along with the future redevelopment of the site, would be beneficial”.
Planning permission was granted with a condition that a full archaeological recording takes place at the site before further development is carried out.