Wellington Street: Plans for new 46-storey skyscraper in Leeds city centre set to be approved

A 46-storey block of flats, along with office buildings, is planned for land near Wellington Street, close to the former Yorkshire Post Newspapers site.

Existing buildings would be demolished and a road repositioned to make way for the scheme by property developer McLaren.

The tallest of the buildings would contain 464 rented apartments under the proposal, set to be discussed by the council’s City Plans Panel on Thursday (April 11).

A report to the meeting said the applicant had added five more storeys to the block of flats since first drawing up plans.

Nearby Skinner Street would be repositioned as part of the scheme.

The application faced an objection from Leeds Civic Trust, which had concerns including the appearance of the development.

The Civic Trust’s objection said: “On a hot sunny Sunday afternoon, aconsiderable number of the possible 726 residents may well be wanting to make use of outdoor green space, as may a few thousand office workers during the week.

“The development is simply too cramped, with too little outside breathing space.”

Landscaping, tree planting and a lawn and play area are part of the proposal, the report said.

One of the owners of the land also objected on the grounds that no agreement had been reached for the developer to buy the site.

The report said the applicant was not required to own the land in order to seek planning permission but would need to acquire legal rights over the site to press ahead with the scheme.

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The panel is recommended to defer and delegate the application to the council’s chief planning officer. Approval would be subject to conditions and financial contributions towards traffic schemes and nearby green space.

The report said: “The proposals identify the potential to regenerate a sustainably located brownfield city centre site which has been underutilised for a number of years.

“Both the construction and operation of the development would provide significant employment opportunities which would make a major contribution to the local economy.”