16/17 LEEDS CIVIC TRUST ANNUAL REPORT DONATIONS AND SPONSORSHIP 2017 CHAIR’S INTRODUCTION The Trust gratefully acknowledges the support its work has received from partners and supporters in the form of grants, donations The Trust has had another terrific year at the forefront of As well as Facebook and Twitter we can now add Instagram and gifts in kind. a wide range of discussions that affect this wonderful city to our social media presence. These platforms enable us to of ours! reach out to a much wider audience and they will make a This year, we were pleased to welcome ten new corporate members to the Trust. They comprise the nine members listed in bold significant contribution to broadening our membership. Hand below plus Oakapple Group, who joined us as a gold member. The work of Leeds Civic Trust has not in the least been in hand with this comes our new website. Our thanks must impeded by changes in Director and Chair.We welcomed go to Meleri who has worked extremely hard to bring this to GOLD CORPORATE MEMBERS CORPORATE MEMBERS Martin Hamilton as Director Designate to the Trust in fruition. All of this must surely mark our arrival into the 21st Acanthus WSM Architects Leeds Beckett University October 2016 and it was officially handed over into his very century! A sleeker and more user-friendly approach to our CEG Adair Paxton LLP Leeds Building Society capable hands on Kevin’s retirement in December 2016. communications will no doubt bring us enormous benefits in www.ceg.co.uk Leeds College of Music the long term. Addleshaw Goddard LLP Whilst there has been mention of ‘transition’ in some of the Andrews Gwynne LLP Leeds Commercial reports contained in this Annual Report it has, in practice, As you might expect, we continued to play a significant role (aq) Limited - t/a aql Leeds Rugby Limited CJCT studio north Ltd been seamless and that is, in no small part, because Martin in highlighting and protecting our city’s heritage. Heritage Architecture 519 Manning Stainton has so easily taken up the reins left by Kevin – it seems he Open Days in Leeds, co-ordinated by the Trust, were as www.cjctstudios.com Armstrong Watson MEPC Ltd has always been with us! To add to this, the Trust benefits interesting and varied as always. Our work surveying more Mills & Reeve LLP Arup from the most dedicated and loyal employees in Meleri and than 2000 buildings at risk, coordinated by our Heritage Mood Developments Ltd Dobson Construction Ltd AW Hainsworth & Sons Ltd Dörte, a vibrant membership and an indefatigable band of at Risk Group, is now complete. We should not forget our Morgans Cityliving www.dobsonconstruction.co.uk Bartlett & Company Ltd volunteers, especially those who chair and work within our historical lectures and walks programmes that continue to Benjn R. Vickers & Sons Ltd Mott MacDonald committees and groups. They all deserve many thanks for attract new people to the work of the Trust. Our work in Bond Dickinson LLP Nick Brown Architects their vital contribution to the work of the Trust. this area is both vital and appreciated. Evans Property Group Bracken Limited Northbar Limited So what have we focused our energies on in particular this www.evanspropertygroup.com Brewster Bye Architects Ltd Oakgate Group Plc Leeds Civic Trust has many strengths but two stand out: year? Three things immediately come to mind: transport, Brown Butler, Chartered OneSubsea Ltd the ability to use our collective intelligence to make Leeds Accountants Opera North membership and our growing engagement with social media. a better place and our ability to change and stay relevant. Hammerson UK Properties Plc These have allowed us to thrive over the last five decades Caddick Developments Ltd Park Lane Properties As you will see from the planning and development report, (Leeds) Ltd and will determine our success in the years to come. www.hammerson.com Citu Developments LLP we have continued to consider a range of applications Pinsent Masons LLP Coda Studios Ltd covering housing, retail and education but it was our vision Royal Armouries It has been a privilege to be elected Chair of Leeds Civic KPMG LLP Colin Brear Advertising & for transport within this city that has been a key focus. So Trust and I look forward to another great year! Marketing Ltd RSM much so that the new Transport Group was set up with a www.kpmg.com/uk Cunniff Design Ltd Seven Architecture Limited mission to produce a ‘Transport Vision’ paper setting out Cushman & Wakefield Sound Leisure Ltd where the priorities should be. Much thought and hard Land Securities Dacres Commercial Sous Le Nez Limited work have gone into this and, as I write, it is on the point of www.landsecurities.com DLA Design Group Ltd Squire Patton Boggs (UK) LLP publication for further discussion amongst a wider audience. DLG Architects LLP Stephen George & Partners LLP Broadening our membership has been an important issue DoubleTree by Hilton Sterling Capitol PLC Jane Taylor Oakapple Group to be addressed this year. Discussions began in January ESH Construction Svenska Handelsbanken AB Chair www.oakapplegroup.co.uk with a selection of meetings to talk about how we should Fore Consulting Limited The Harris Partnership Ltd September 2017 go about this. Some very helpful suggestions came out of Freeths LLP The Queens Richard Boothroyd & Associates Ltd Turley these meetings which have been and will continue to be Garbutt & Elliott LLP implemented. www.rba-online.co.uk Garnett Netherwood University of Leeds Architects Ltd Victoria Leeds Rushbond Group Gordons LLP Solicitors Walton & Co Hallam Land Management Watts Group Plc www.rushbond.co.uk Limited West and Machell Ltd Hoare Lea Lighting West & North Yorkshire Town Centre Securities Plc ID Town Planning Chamber of Commerce Consultancy Ltd Westward Care Limited www.tcs-plc.com Jones Lang LaSalle Limited Whittam Cox Architects Joseph’s Well, Westgate, Leeds Wrigleys Solicitors LLP Wilton Developments King & Co WYG Group Ltd Front Cover Picture TRUST www.wiltondevelopments.co.uk Knight Frank LLP Yorkshire Design Group ‘Leeds: You’ll Love it 2017’ by Clifford Stead, artist and Leeds Civic Trust Council member. LEEDS CIVIC TRUST LEEDS CIVIC 02 03 1. Masterplanning: Forty people gathered at the West Yorkshire Playhouse to brainstorm improvements to Quarry Hill. 2. Bond Court: Refurbished public realm and location of the luxury Dakota Hotel. PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT We believe that more new housing could be delivered Education on previously developed brownfield sites within the city Education is vital to the economy of Leeds and our world- and so have objected to a number of large edge-of-town class universities, colleges and schools continue to invest estates. Their reliance on private car use and long-distance in their estate. Among 24 education-related applications commuting makes these sites unsustainable. However, we were plans for a new Leeds City College campus at Quarry have been cheered by plans for family homes within the Hill (now under construction), a Leeds Beckett University present urban area, with the Hunslet Climate Innovation Creative Arts building and new University of Leeds research District and Kirkstall Forge (with its own railway station) and teaching facilities along Woodhouse Lane. featuring interesting design approaches and construction methods. Partners have identified a need to accommodate more technology-led companies in Leeds and this has led to We have seen fifteen proposals for converting offices to the concept of an Innovation District (science park) apartments and, while these may bring additional vitality to encompassing the Universities and the Leeds General the city centre in particular, we must ensure that we do not Infirmary. The University of Leeds Nexus building, now under lose the low-cost office space that is valuable to small firms construction and the first building in an ongoing programme, and start-up businesses. will house a range of offices, laboratories and meeting spaces. We have long questioned the housing requirements set out Student housing continues to be brought forward but we in the approved Core Strategy for Leeds as there are many were glad to see several schemes proposed in the city centre more sites with permission than there are with dwellings rather than Woodhouse – a project approved at the top of under construction. The review now in progress provides an New Briggate could be of particularly high quality. opportunity to re-examine the figures and to prevent more ‘cheaper-to-build-upon’ land being concreted over before more challenging sites are reused. I Leisure and Retail Introduction applications and this, together with a look back through The many applications for bars or restaurants, particularly presentations made to the committee, has steered this in traditional retail areas, will change the character of the The last year was a time of transition for the Trust, with a review of the year. city centre but the market for eateries seems insatiable. new Chair and Director providing an opportunity to review New destinations such as Merrion Street East and Victoria our areas of interest. However, planning, development and Housing Gate have been joined by a revitalised Greek Street where transport issues remain a key element of our work and the Over a third of applications considered, and of presentations extended pedestrianisation has transformed its character. Planning Committee has had a busy year. made, related to housing projects. These ranged from single We continued to lose traditional pubs and we reviewed six Development dwellings to major multi-unit sites, high density city centre projects which replaced drinking with residential use – some towers and extensive suburban estates. We saw several We have reviewed over 260 planning applications, supporting of these were conversions, where at least the townscape (sometimes with comments) 19%, commenting on 7% and Private Rental Sector (PRS) schemes which promised a impact will be limited, but others involved demolition of a characterful building.