St Edward to Present Its Revised North Street Scheme on the Stage

Published on: 7 Sep, 2023
Updated on: 7 Sep, 2023

A computer-generated graphic of how the revised North Street scheme will look.

By Martin Giles

This article was originally published on August 29 but is being republished to remind readers of this evening’s event.

St Edward is presenting its revised proposals for the regeneration of North Street at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

The revised proposal for the controversial North Street redevelopment scheme will be presented publicly tonight by St Edward, a consortium formed by site owners M&G and developers Berkely Homes. It is encouraging Guildford residents to attend the 90-minute presentation at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre at 7pm and ask questions.

In a statement, a spokesperson for St Edward said: “We submitted a planning application to Guildford Borough Council in July last year for 473 new homes, the pedestrianisation of North Street, refurbishment of the bus station, and space for cultural and leisure uses, to complement the high street offering rather than compete with it.

“Following the refusal of this planning application in January 2023, we have continued to actively engage with stakeholders, residents and statutory authorities to understand the changes required to overcome the reasons for refusal. A revised planning application was submitted in July 2023 that addresses these reasons, which will be heard at committee in autumn 2023.”

John Harrison speaking at a GBC planning meeting on behalf of the Guildford Residents Association

John Harrison a member of the Guildford Residents Association, who has commented previously on the project, said he is looking forward to the latest presentation adding: “It’s encouraging that there is sufficient interest to justify the Yvonne Arnaud. I particularly look forward to seeing clear illustrations of the proposal that show an honest depiction that can be objectively accessed.

The St Edward statement continued: “Since our first community engagement event in 2020, we’ve received a fantastic response from the people who live and work in and visit Guildford.

“The ideas and comments we’ve had have shaped the proposals we put forward in our first planning application in July 2022, and feedback since then has now helped us to address areas of concern as we now submit a revised application.

“In extremely challenging economic times, we remain committed to delivering a scheme that we believe will transform the town centre and bring a myriad of benefits to residents, businesses and the wider community, and we hope to see as many people as possible at our live presentation.”

But St Edward are still also appealing against the GBC Planning Committee decision to refuse the first planning application.

Cllr George Potter

George Potter, (Lib Dem, Burpham) and lead councillor for Planning said: “The North Street scheme is highly significant for our town centre, so we welcome anything to increase awareness.

“It is a positive move that the developer has been prepared to make amendments to their original application, although details on the increase in affordable housing are yet to be revealed, but it will be for the Planning Committee to judge whether or not the original grounds for refusal have been overcome.

“To help inform the public about this scheme we have published impartial FAQs about the scheme on our website: GuildfordLibDems.org.uk/NorthStreetFAQs.

“Separately, Guildford Borough Council is vigorously defending the appeal by the developer against the refusal of their original application.”