'Shoddy' development takes one step closer to fruition

A new ‘gateway’ office and apartment complex in Stafferton Way and Braywick Road took one step closer last night, amid concerns over its ‘shoddy’ design.

Councillors convened at Maidenhead Town Hall to discuss the application, which was split into a full and outline application.

Developer Royal London Mutual Insurance Society sought full consent for permission to demolish Statesman House and build an eight-storey office building with 141 car parking spots.

Next door, the developer laid out plans to build another seven-storey office block and a nine-storey apartment building containing 125 flats and 106 parking spaces following demolition of Braywick Gate.

This outline application sought permission for the fundamental details before a full application would be submitted at a later date.

At Thursday’s meeting, Cllr Joshua Reynolds (Lib Dem, Furze Platt) was sceptical of the application, which he noticed came after a previous, taller proposal at the same site.

“We’ve heard that this is a strategic gateway site and I’m assuming that this site is designed to be a landmark office site,” said Cllr Reynolds.

“I don’t think there’s anything ‘landmark’ about this office building at all; in my opinion, it’s more shoddy than some of the developments we’re seeing in the town centre as it is.”

Cllr Reynolds added that he was ‘not a fan’ of the positioning of the location of the site for perspective residents whose properties would be overlooking a railway and an electricity sub-station.

Cllr Gerry Clark (Con, Bisham & Cookham) said he agreed with ‘some of the sentiments expressed by Cllr Reynolds’, but said the location of the site could not be helped and highlighted that, according to officers’ recommendation, the application was compliant with planning policy.

“We have a duty to approve planning applications where they meet the bar unless there are material planning considerations why we believe that an application should not be allowed.

“That actually doesn’t mean I’m in favour of this application, but what it actually means is that in terms of this debate, what I haven’t heard are any material planning considerations, any objections which are relevant to our policies or planning law which would mean that we should not follow officers’ recommendations.”

Cllr Clark, seconded by Cllr John Baldwin (Lib Dem, Furze Platt), proposed to permit the application on the basis that reserved matters in the outline application come back to the planning panel when a full proposal is submitted.

All councillors voted for his motion, apart from Cllr Reynolds and Cllr Leo Walters (Con, Bray) who voted against and abstained respectively.