People in Nottingham have expressed concern as a historic building has been proposed to become student flats. Plans have been put forward to Nottingham City Council for Thiskey House, an office building on 2 St James Terrace in Nottingham.
The building dates back to the 1820’s the property was originally a house. Now plans for the building could see a nine bedroom student home. It is three stories high and also has a basement.
The proposed conversion would include nine student flats with an en-suite bathroom, a living area, kitchen and dining area, and a games room on the ground floor.
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The applicant has proposed for the residential HMO to meet a growing demand for student accommodation within the Castle Quarter and City Centre.
People in Nottingham, however, say they are worried as they think there’s too much student accommodation being built in the city.
55-year-old Janet Morris, from Toton said: “There’s a lot being built at the moment. I don’t see why they would choose this building for the students. I supposed it’s a good location - but isn’t there enough already? I do think students are good for the city but I just think turning everything into accommodation is too much.”
Several plans have been put forward for student flats in Lister Gate in the city centre. Plans could see three new student flats on the upper floors of two retail units on 19 - 23 Lister Gate. Student flats are also proposed for the upper floors above the old Shoe Zone store in Lister Gate.
Yvonne Hardwick, who was born in Beeston however now lives in Eastwood, said: “I’m not happy about that. They were even talking about Debenhams. It’s all just charity shops and students. Let's have a change. I think they need to stop doing it. I lived in Beeston for 30 years and it’s just full of students. It's just going to be a ghost town when they all leave.”
The most common locations within Nottingham for the developments are the city centre, Radford, and around the University of Nottingham's Jubilee Campus. Nottingham City Council previously said in 2021 that 7,000 more rooms were needed by 2024/25.
49-year-old Adam Miller, told Nottinghamshire Live: “I think it could be put to better use. I think it’s a shame because any shop or business that closes the first plans put forward is for student flats. There’s already a lot of student flats and houses all throughout the city. It just feels like a loss of space that could have been taken up by a new business or shop.”
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