Hammerson is set to turn the former Debenhams department store at Highcross shopping centre in Leicester into 305 build-to-rent flats, after gaining consent from Leicester City Council planners.
Proposals for the scheme, which involve demolishing the empty store and removing its 201 car parking spaces for three residential-led blocks, have been approved subject to conditions shown in a delegated powers decision notice.
These include securing approval for further development details, materials schedules and a construction method statement from the local planning authority.
The three blocks will rise to 12, 11 and eight storeys, with around 3,680 sq ft of commercial space on the lower and upper ground floors. The site, on St Peter’s Lane, covers nearly 1.25 acres.
Plans for the scheme were formally submitted in March last year, with Packaged Living appointed as development manager. CallisonRTKL is the architect.
Revisions were made in July last year to scale down the height of the scheme and, by extension, the number of proposed BTR homes.
In total, the plans will replace some 131,000 sq ft of retail space.
A spokesman for Hammerson said the scheme “exemplifies Hammerson’s strategy to focus on value creation potential within our existing urban estates and proactively repurposing space”.
Mark Woodrow, joint managing director at Packaged Living, said: “St Peter’s Lane is the result of Hammerson and Packaged Living’s shared vision to deliver high quality and sustainable rental homes within mixed-use communities.”
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