Category: Planning (Page 1 of 6)

Planning application for Nithsdale Street – steel container for open air cafe & takeaway

A planning application for the vacant ground at 47 Nithsdale Street has been submitted, and can be viewed at Glasgow City Council’s Planning Portal, using reference 23/01662/FUL. The application is titled “Use of land for siting of steel containers for use as cafe and hot food takeaway (Sui generis), includes installation of flue extract, with external seating area and erection of fence.”

Whatever your views, you can respond before the deadline of 25 September. You can find some useful guidance on responding to planning applications at Planning Law Blog.

It is worth noting that this vacant site sits within the conservation area, although, oddly, the adjacent buildings (World Foods, etc) do not (there is a map on the BungoBlog).

Full site plan including the two steel containers, and open air bench seating

And here’s the site as seen on Google Maps. It’s been tidied up and the gable end wall repaired since this view however.
View from google maps of site on Nithsdale Street

Arnold Clarke site planning application

The planning application for the second of the Arnold Clarke sites (134 Nithsdale Drive) has been submitted, and can be viewed at Glasgow City Council’s Planning Portal, using reference 23/01956/FUL.

Whatever your views, you can respond before the deadline of 22 September. At 104 flats, this is possibly the largest development in Strathbungo area since the 19th century, so please consider making your views (positive or negative) heard. You can find some useful guidance on responding to planning applications at Planning Law Blog.

It is worth noting that the site is not within the Conservation Area but is directly adjacent to it. The site is surrounded by Listed Buildings at Moray Place, Salisbury Crescent and Darnley Street (there is a map on the BungoBlog).

Editor’s note:

Thanks to Toby for submitting this.

Here’s an aerial view
Aerial view of Page park proposal at Nithsdale Drive

The architects state “Our design thinking seeks to ‘fill the gap’ complementing the scale and aspirations of surrounding buildings, with particular reference to the work of Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson, whose Category ‘A’ listed terrace, Moray Place faces onto the site.”

Note here’s what the plan looked like as originally proposed in March. While the block is similar, note how the detailing and the curved end features have been dropped and an extra flat stuck on each end instead.

View from Page Parks original proposal

Original proposal

Proposal for Nithsdale Drive as seen from the roundabout

Current proposal

nithsdale-drive-arnold-clark 2 nithsdale-drive-arnold-clark 1 nithsdale-drive-arnold-clark old

Back Lane Repairs Update

We have previously reported on plans to undertake some repairs to the back lanes.

It’s been a bit quiet since, mainly because the Council then decided to require us to make a planning application. We have just been informed we have permission to go ahead, and we are looking at a possible start in late April, or failing that in July, depending on the availability of our contractor, Richard Birch Gardens.

The planning application applies to both Vennard/Marywood cross lanes where they meet Vennard Gardens. It can be accessed on the Glasgow Planning Portal, ref 23/00175/FUL, or this direct link might work.

The Marywood Square back lane repairs are just that, and simpler in scope, so we have not pursued a planning application for this work. It may also ultimately be outside our fixed budget, but we will endeavour to achieve what we can.

Meanwhile we were originally told this could be a pilot for further repairs, but have since been informed that we can only apply for funding once. So unless there is a change of policy, the project stops once this work is done.

Nithsdale Road Bridge Reinstatement

The Society has been attempting to engage with Glasgow City Council about the road design on the new bridge since 2019, with the aim to encourage active travel such as walking and cycling, but it wasn’t until November 2022 that we got any response. With the aid of Cllr Jon Molyneux, GoBike and others, agreement was reached regarding improvements on the bridge and junction, including a segregated bike lane.

So we were massively disappointed when the bridge re-opened with the exact same road design as on its predecessor, as was our Councillor. It appears council officers “dropped the ball”.

The Society has written to the council to express our disappointment, and the letter is reproduced below (appendices removed for brevity):

Derek Dunsire,
Group Manager Liveable Neighbourhoods,
Glasgow City Council
Derek.Dunsire@glasgow.gov.uk

26/1/23

Dear Mr Dunsire,

The Strathbungo Society has been trying to engage with Network Rail and Glasgow City Council on future plans for the Nithsdale Rd bridge ever since the plans for electrification of the line were given the go-ahead. For example, after the very helpful presentation given by Henry Dempsey to the Pollokshields Area Partnership about plans for the bridges in the ward and the respective responsibilities of the Council and Network Rail, we tried to engage further (correspondence appended). We had very little success with either NR or GCC but were therefore extremely hopeful when at Cllr Molyneux’s instigation you held a site meeting on the 8th November 2022 which was attended by Cllr Molyneux, a number of GCC staff, a number of the Strathbungo Society Committee and a representative from the Glasgow Cycling Campaign. We were told then that GCC staff had been working on the design of the road across the bridge, to ensure it was future proofed and that it would include a two-way segregated bicycle lane. Your staff also undertook to look at other issues, for example to address water run-off from the extensive area of hardstanding, perhaps by creating a green soakaway / SUD.

It was with dismay therefore that the Strathbungo Society witnessed the contractors returning the bridge to how it was with the same narrow “murder strip” (Go Bike) for cyclists on the north side of the bridge as previously, which is unlikely to meet modern design standards . We understand from Cllr Molyneux that the reason for this is partly that a TRO was required and this was not done in time. While we understand the pressures you and your staff are under and you may not have direct responsibility for TROs, we would appreciate a fuller explanation of what has gone wrong. It seems to us to be crazy that when the Council is so short of resources that we are now in a position where the road over the bridge will require to be dug up again to install the bike lanes. What a waste! Moreover, now the road is open again we suspect there may be more objections to any proposed new traffic layout than there would have been if this had been progressed while the bridge was closed.

We note that on the internet – https://urban-future.org/speaker/derek-dunsire/– you describe yourself as “making cities more sustainable through community-led activities at a local level, involving residents, academia, businesses, city authorities, and other stakeholder organisations … focused on delivering real outcomes and not just project outputs … by working collectively”. Unfortunately, there has been a total absence of any collective working on the Nithsdale Rd Bridge – between the community, Network Rail and Glasgow City Council and elected Councillors. In fact, it seems to have been a “closed shop” of GCC and NR. The Strathbungo Society has never been provided with plans, either by Network Rail or by the Council, of how the finished road bridge would look. Had we been given sight of the plans, we might have also been able to ensure that appropriate action and amendments were made, saving time and money for all concerned. The issues continue we now have serious concerns about the nature and the standard of the stone facing to the concrete parapets which don’t appear suitable for a conservation area. The contractors, BAM, have now been out to look at the work after comments on social media and we would be grateful if you would now ask a planner with conservation expertise to look at the work.

At the onsite meeting we asked for a contact to liaise with the Council on matters to deal with the bridge. Unfortunately, you declined to provide a named contact and instead suggested we use the generic Liveable Neighbourhoods email. The consequences of that failure to appoint a lead seems to us linked to the failure of GCC to provide us with the courtesy of a message explaining what had gone wrong.

The wider issue here is that in good faith we have started to engage with the Liveable Neighbourhoods Project Team at Atkins. It is clear from that that there is very little corporate memory within Glasgow City Council and we have had to provide them with copies of work we did on the Nithsdale Rd area as part of the Pollokshields Charrette. While we understand some of the challenges you and your staff are facing, and don’t mind providing Atkins with information where we can, with GCC now apparently so short of resources that it cannot even deliver a simple project for a bridge we have serious concerns about how any Liveable Neighbourhood Plan for our area can possibly be delivered. That raises the question of whether GCC, instead of outsourcing plans to contractors, might not be better employing staff and increasing its capacity to DO things.

To take things forward in a constructive and collective manner, we propose a meeting to be convened by elected Councillors and to include the Strathbungo Society, the two Community Councils, Go Bike and GCC officials (LNT, NRS / Roads) to review what went wrong – and more importantly to discuss and shape proposals for Strathbungo portion of approved design work for the active travel route between Pollokshaws Rd and Dumbreck Road – which crucially include the road bridge and environs.

The Strathbungo Society is very supportive of the Council’s active travel plans and would like to be in a position to help make these happen by explaining their benefit to local residents. To do this effectively will require collective discussion on design and action on delivery and implementation. In the respect the Society would also like to see early movement in 2023 to establish a new active travel route between the south end of Moray Place to link it Titwood Road.

Yours Sincerely,

Paola Rezzilli
(Chair Strathbungo Society)

cc Cllr Jon Molyneux, Cllr Zen Ghani, Bailie Norman MacLeod, Bailie Hanif Raja, Shawlands Community Council, Pollokshields Development Trust, Go Bike

We have also been in touch with the contractor responsible for the stone facing being installed on the bridge, with concerns about the quality of the initial work, and they have promised to review this.

If we get a reply, we will let you know.

The Arnold Clark development – Planning Application

Further to previous posts on this subject (in February and April), the planning application for this development is now live and you can read it on the Glasgow Council website: Glasgow City Council Planning Department.

Search using the application reference: 22/01468/FUL

The last date for comments is Tue 19 July (see “Important Dates” tab for the application).

Continue reading

Update on the Arnold Clark development

Representatives from AS Homes and Southside Housing Association (SHA) were kind enough to attend the last Strathbungo Society committee meeting, and elaborate on their plans for the site at Pollokshaws Road and Nithsdale Drive.

Some points to note:

  • In response to concerns raised, the height at the corner has been dropped from eight storeys to seven, though possibly by extending the seven stories a little further along Pollokshaws Road (see sketches). At this end it will then drop to 5 storeys to match the roof line of the next building. On Nithsdale Drive it will drop to 4 storeys near the Mission Hall. They intend to provide “sunlight analysis” diagrams with their planning application, which may help decide if this sufficiently allays fears of neighbours, especially those on the other side of Nithsdale Drive. While they justify the height based on examples of other tall corner buildings in the neighbourhood, we did note that generally those buildings do not cast shadows over neighbouring residents.
  • There will be no on-site car parking, in line with Council expectations. SHA state that car uptake amongst their tenants on other developments is actually very low, even where parking has been provided. The parking (nose-in) on Nithsdale Drive will be retained, and they may provide electric charging points on some of these bays. Secure cycle storage wil open straight out onto Pollokshaws Road.
  • All services are contained within the footprint of the building (bin-stores etc.)
  • The building will be in a mostly red brick finish, to reflect the local red sandstone tenements.
  • They expect it to be a “gas free” development, and are looking at alternative heating options, and solar panels on the roof.
  • The planning application will be lodged with the council in about two weeks from now, and there will then be the usual statutory period if you wish to object or raise concerns. So watch the Council planning portal, and if we hear, we will link to it here.
  • SHA and AS Homes are not involved in the other Arnold Clark future development further along Nithsdale Drive (the old servicing depot).

Continue reading

Possible futures: Bungo Borehole Network

It is clear that we need to get Strathbungo off gas heating sooner rather than later, but onto what? Improving energy efficiency and insulation comes first, but we need to replace the boilers. One option is air source heat pumps where each property has their own independent system. Another is a district heating system where hot water is delivered directly to properties rather than gas. District heating needs a heat source, Central Glasgow will get a network drawing heat from the Clyde, parts of Southside might be able to run a network off the White Cart, and in some areas (regrettably probably not ours) minewater heat can be used. Strathbungo does not have an obvious heat source but there are still options.

Ground Source Heat Pumps which draw energy from under the ground (1.5-250m) can work better than Air Source Heat Pumps as underground is at a pretty constant temperature year round. They can use pipes laid in trenches if you have lots of space (we do not) or boreholes otherwise. However, the cost of drilling a borehole can be high, partly due to the cost of bringing in the equipment. Drilling lots of boreholes in one go is much cheaper per borehole than drilling them one off. Therefore a network of boreholes in Strathbungo’s back lanes might supply the needs of Strathbungo’s heating.

There are other advantages: such heat pumps can be run in reverse to provide cooling. While Glasgow has historically not had much need of cooling, we don’t live in that world any more. Heatwaves can kill large numbers of people. Consequently ensuring that at least some properties have cooling is an essential matter of life and death as well as increased comfort. We can invite neighbours round to lie next to cold radiators and wait for the weather to turn, as it surely will. Running the pumps in reverse also helps recharge the boreholes, increasing their capacity and efficiency in the winter.

One of the key constraints is the rate at which the ground cooled by the boreholes warms up again as heat moves in from the centre of the earth and surrounding ground. Draw energy out too fast and the ground will slowly cool over the years and the system become less efficient. Charging the boreholes in the summer from cooling radiators/solar thermal panels etc. can enable more homes to be heated off the same borehole network.

The main difficulty is likely to be organisational and financial rather than technical as there is a significant capital cost, complexities around running costs, title deeds etc. and it would only work financially if enough households made a firm commitment.

Kensa has a video of how ground source district heating systems can work.

Strathbungo Eco Group and Loco Home Retrofit are talking to one manufacturer about the possibility of a Bungo Borehole Network. We hope that developing this idea and assessing feasibility can form part of future back lane funding proposals. Loco Home Retrofit will also apply to the new Heat Networks Development Fund to develop this idea. We are looking for people to help manage this project, do get in touch: strathbungoecogroup@gmail.com

Proposed development on Arnold Clark site

The Arnold Clark showroom has been a prominent feature in Strathbungo for a century, sitting on the corner of Pollokshaws Road and Nithsdale Drive. It was built as The Queens Garage in the 1920s, and it has operated as a motor showroom ever since. Although the building looks a modern replacement, it is actually the original building with a new fascia.

However the showroom has now closed, and the land earmarked for housing. Today the first proposal for the site has been released by South Side Housing Association and Keppie Design, and they are looking for your comments. Note that while this is just an initial proposal, they hope to lodge their planning application in March or April.

You have a brief opportunity to discuss at this stage. Feel free to discuss on the Keppie Design web site, on here, on social media, or email chair@strathbungo.co.uk if you would rather the Society reflect your views anonymously.

The consultation dates are as follows:

  • 24th February 2022 – 17th March 2022 (21 days): Public consultation period, with website available throughout.
  • 3rd March 2022: A ‘live’ and interactive/two-way consultation event between 3pm – 6pm (3 hours), hosted as a ‘chat box’ function on the website.
  • 17th March 2022: Final date for submitting comments via contact details on the website.

Their sketch above is based off Google Streetview, so here is a more realistic rendition of what is to come, and what it replaces.

Artist’s rendition, superimposed on Google Streetview

The Queens Garage

The Arnold Clark showroom

Update

There’s a proposal gone in for the other part of Arnold Clarks on Nithsdale Drive today, beside the railway line. Not much detail:

What do you want Strathbungo to look like?

You might have noticed the consultation on the neighbouring Langside, Battlefield, Mount Florida, King’s Park & Toryglen Liveable Neighbourhoods. This year it is likely to be the turn of Strathbungo and Shawlands to be consulted in this way as the Glasgow City Council works its way across the city. This is a key opportunity to tell the council what the current problems are and what our hopes and dreams for the future of Strathbungo and the surrounding area are.

If we submit our best ideas, some of them might get funded and there is also the possibility that this consultation could lead to a Local Place Plan. This would give the agreed hopes and dreams of residents the full force of planning law and so bring them about through future developments.

While this consultation is still unconfirmed and months away, the time to get thinking is now. What do you want fixed? What do you want to change? What do you want to keep? How can we build an even better Strathbungo?

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