Just a reminder of how Frontier Estates went ahead with the horrendous Beech
House development, despite a great deal of local opposition. Expect more of
their dodgy dealings with respect to Barton Road!
14th November 2015
Residents protest over plans for five-storey student block
Callum Keown
SCHOOLCHILDREN and sheltered housing residents got together to protest against
plans for a five-storey student block, housing 167 students.
A decision is expected on the scheme next month, which would sit opposite a
block of more than 300 student rooms already in Latimer Road, Oxford.
The development, Beech House, would see the demolition of four homes on the
corner of London Road and Latimer Road.
Robert Drake, a Latimer Road resident for 15 years, organised the protest to
encourage the council to turn the scheme down.
He said: “ A building of four to five storeys is out of character for a
residential street like this and the design is ugly.
“The fact that four family homes are being knocked down is a big concern.”
The 59-year-old added: “Students make up an important part of Oxford’s
character but what the city desperately needs is affordable accommodation for
key workers.”
Following a public consultation on the plans in October 2014, an initial scheme
was reduced from 184 student rooms to 175, but increased from four storeys to
five.
Plans then submitted in March this year received more than 200 written
objections, prompting the developer Frontier Estates to put forward amendments
last month.
The latest plans have seen a further decrease in student numbers to 167 and a
reduction in the amount of the scheme which would reach five storeys.
If approved the development – combined with the 313 students in the opposite
Dorset House – would see 480 students living on the road.
Dr Gareth Jones, a GP who lives in Latimer Road, said: “It will change the
whole feel of the road – we don’t want to find ourselves becoming a Brookes
campus.”
Sheltered housing block St Luke’s Hospital, home to 43 residents, also sits on
the road.
General manager of St Luke Housing Society Sandy Russell said: “We are a
sheltered housing complex for the elderly and those with certain disabilities.
“We are concerned for the safety of our tenants not just during demolition and
construction but the long term effects too.
“A lot of our residents use mobility scooters and the scheme will increase
traffic.”
Mother-of-two Hannah Rea said: “A five-storey block is an overdevelopment of
the site and the developer doesn’t seem to have considered the overwhelming
need for key worker housing in the area.
“The changes seem to be trivial and the protest is because we feel a debate
should be had.”
She said her 11-year-old son Joseph, who has just started walking to Cheney
School, was concerned it would increase traffic and become a taxi drop-off
point making the road unsafe.
Director at Frontier Estates, Mike Mansell, said: “Beech House will provide
much-needed accommodation for students and residential dwellings, within easy
walking distance of the Brookes campus and the shops and services in
Headington.
“We believe this is the right scheme, in the right place.”