A Leeds development site that will see an historic church transformed into 175 new homes is being put on the market for £2.85m.
The Grade II* listed St Mary’s Church in Richmond Hill is set to be extended and turned into one, two and three-bedroom apartments under a redevelopment secured by Estate Aid Ltd and MSM. The church was built in 1951, but closed in 1989 and has been empty since.
The church and a proposed extension will contain 62 apartments, while the existing presbytery will be knocked down and replaced with a five-storey building comprising 113 apartments. There will be 152 cycle and 56 car parking spaces.
The Brewster Bye Architects-designed scheme was worked on in association with Historic England, Civic Trust and Leeds City Council’s conservation department. The site is now being marketed by Linley & Simpson.
Mark Henderson, director at Brewster Bye, described the church as “a beautiful and historic building”, but added that it had become “an ugly symbol of degeneration in this part of the city, with parts of the structure held up by scaffolding”.
“Our proposals retain all the most important elements of the original church building and the sympathetic, yet striking extension help to make the development viable,” Henderson added. “It now has the potential to become a key landmark once again on the city’s skyline that both its new residents and the local area can be proud of.”
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