Xsite Architecture, a local architectural practice, has submitted revised plans for a controversial housing development in Newcastle after their original proposal was rejected by city planners and subsequently failed on appeal. The firm initially proposed a four-to-six-story residential building at 7-45 Lime Street, located on a strip of land east of Newcastle's city center, back in 2021.
The original development plan called for demolishing a disused MOT (Ministry of Transport) testing center and a former pigeon coop currently occupying the site. The proposed building would have included new commercial space alongside residential units. However, Newcastle City Council's planning committee rejected the designs in 2023, going against the recommendations of their own planning staff. The committee cited significant concerns about the living standards that future residents would face and the potential negative impact the development could have on the surrounding conservation area.
Developer PropertyLimeSt appealed the city council's rejection, but their efforts proved unsuccessful. In March of this year, planning inspector W. Johnson upheld the original refusal decision. Johnson specifically identified that three proposed homes would suffer from severely inadequate natural light, stating that "the scheme would not provide an acceptable level of accommodation for future occupants." The inspector provided detailed reasoning, explaining that "the significantly low levels of daylight for units 13, 26 and 39, particularly in the main living areas, would result in harmful living conditions for the future occupants of these units."
Interestingly, Inspector Johnson rejected broader concerns about the development's impact on the area's character. He determined that the scheme would not be of a design or presence that would harm the character or appearance of the conservation area, suggesting the architectural approach was sound but the specific unit layouts were problematic.
In response to these specific criticisms, Xsite Architecture has now submitted a completely redesigned version of the development that directly addresses the lighting issues in the three problematic apartments. The problematic units are located on the first, second, and third floors of the building, positioned at the southern end of the narrow strip site. In their earlier submission, Xsite had acknowledged that these flats were single-aspect units surrounded by retained woodland, which resulted in severely limited sunlight exposure throughout the day.
The architectural firm's solution involved a significant redesign of the building's layout. The three previously problematic flats have now been converted to dual-aspect units, meaning they will have windows facing multiple directions. This change specifically adds eastern-facing views that look out over the River Ouse, dramatically improving natural light penetration. To accommodate this layout change, Xsite had to reduce the size of neighboring apartments on each affected floor, converting them from two-bedroom units to one-bedroom flats.
The overall architectural design maintains many elements from the original proposal. The building continues to feature grey brickwork as its primary exterior material, including decorative patterned brickwork details. The upper stories are designed with setbacks and feature darker brickwork to create visual interest and reduce the building's apparent mass. The roofline incorporates a series of pitched roofs rather than a flat contemporary design, helping the building blend with the traditional architecture of the surrounding conservation area.
This case highlights the complex challenges architects face when developing housing in historic urban areas, where they must balance modern living standards with conservation requirements. The revised plans represent Xsite Architecture's attempt to create viable housing while addressing the specific technical concerns that led to the original rejection and failed appeal.
