Plans have been revealed for the redevelopment of Friary House on Greyfriars Road in Cardiff City Centre.
The proposals are for new high quality student accommodation, along with ground floor retail space with the design proposed being an 11-storey building rising towards the back of the site to 25-storeys. The plans would provide 399 units which would accommodate up to 593 bedspaces.
A public consultation has been launched by site owner Topland Group and specialist student accommodation developer Colico Living, inviting local businesses and members of the public to comment on the plans before they are finalised and submitted to Cardiff Council this summer.
Designed by ECE Westworks Architects, the proposed building will be designed, built and operated to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating which is one of the highest awards that can be given for sustainability. There will also be a bio-diversity net gain provided by the building’s green and blue roofs.
Lisa Timberlake, project lead for Colico Living said:
“Providing accommodation for nearly 600 students, the proposals will respond to Cardiff’s growing demand for student accommodation. The city-centre location provides students with excellent accommodation and reduces student demand for homes in family neighbourhoods near the city-centre. This will help to address rising rent-prices and release houses back to family occupation at affordable prices.”
William Davies, Director of Asset Management at Topland Group said:
“Topland has been a long term investor in Cardiff and has owned Friary House for over 10 years. The building itself was built in the early 1960’s and has now reached the end of its useful life as an office building. It no longer meets the needs of modern office occupiers and the prime office pitch has moved from here. As a result we are excited to bring forward these plans for a new scheme that will introduce new life into this City Centre location and add a positive outlook to the streetscape. The introduction of high quality accommodation into such a central location will bring significant benefits to Cardiff.”
Topland Group and Colico Living are inviting comments on the proposals as part of the Pre-Application Consultation (PAC) process, the deadline for comments is the 28 April 2023.
More information about the proposals can be found on the project website www.colicoliving.com/friary-house-cardiff-pac.
The project team will also be holding a webinar on April 19 2023 at 12:30, more information about this is available on the website.
