Historic England Disappointed at Anglia Square Decision
Historic England has expressed disappointment in Norwich City Council’s decision to approve the proposal for the redevelopment of the site at Anglia Square.
A significant opportunity has been lost to repair and enhance the character of Norwich, one of England’s finest historic cities.
We are disappointed that an extraordinary opportunity has been missed in Norwich. A redevelopment of Anglia Square at an appropriate scale for the historic area could have done much to create a vibrant and exciting space which at the same time complemented and enhanced the city’s historic character. The scale and mass of this development is too big for Norwich. The architectural character is at odds with the historic city. It’s deeply disappointing that the suggested alternative approaches have not been considered and the opportunity to create an innovative, people-focussed, characterful and considered development, has been missed
In its advice to Norwich City Council Historic England strongly supported the principle of sympathetically redeveloping Anglia Square, removing the existing failing and incomplete development, repairing the character of the area and building a contemporary development to meet the needs of the people of Norwich.
Historic England advised that redevelopment of Anglia Square could be achieved in a way which provided much-needed housing and other facilities and also responded fully to Norwich’s exceptional historic character.
Developers Weston Homes were advised by Historic England to reduce the scale of the proposed development to fit with the historic setting which makes Norwich such a special place for local people and visitors.
Norwich is one of England’s finest historic cities, with over 1000 years of history and a wealth of historic buildings. It is of exceptional archaeological, architectural, artistic and historic significance.
Historic England understands that the city’s regeneration is an important objective for the city council under the Norwich Investment Plan. It’s important that regeneration projects are considered in a holistic way to ensure that they sympathetically connect to, and enhance, the character of such an important historic city.
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