Changes to block of student flats planned above Wilko’s Bognor Regis store

Changes to the design of a block of student flats planned above Wilko’s Bognor Regis store have been made by developers.
Revised designs for a block of student flats above Wilko in Bognor Regis.Revised designs for a block of student flats above Wilko in Bognor Regis.
Revised designs for a block of student flats above Wilko in Bognor Regis.

But officers at Arun District Council raised concerns about the design of the proposed new building.

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They felt there was no continuity between the Wilko’s Bedford Street elevation and the new building proposed above, while there was no relief to the starkness of the sheer elevation upwards.

Developers have gone back to their architects and have now submitted revised plans to the council.

According to the fresh documents: “The west elevation is the primary elevation where the existing and proposed buildings share space.

“The void between new and old is formed using a recessed ‘shadow gap’ which expresses the retained form of the original building and allows it to stand forward of the structure above.

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“The shadow gap is formed using matte black expanded metal architectural mesh which also provides full through ventilation for the structural and semi-concealed service zone.

“The composition of the new building is based on an underlying subservient brick ‘base layer’ which sits back from both the original building and the vertical stair core.

“Rendered elements then form the mass of the elevation. This expression of rendered and brickwork zones allows the overall mass of the west elevation to be broken down into parcels or terraces which are lesser in area than the Wilko elevation.”

To comment on the application visit www.arun.gov.uk/weekly-lists using code BR/270/18/PL.