A consultation has started on plans to turn the site of a former bingo hall into almost 40 affordable flats in Cardiff.
Plans to build flats at the site of a former bingo hall, Riva Bingo, in Splott which was gutted by fire have been revealed by developers.
The bingo hall closed in 2009 and the building was damaged by fire in 2015 and subsequently demolished. Around 80 firefighters battled the fire and 60 nearby homes were evacuated.
Now, a proposal to build 39 affordable flats on the site in Agate Street is open to consultation.
Plans to build 47 flats on the land was given the go-ahead by Cardiff Council in 2016 . This consent has now lapsed after a dispute over affordable housing contributions.
The new development would consist of 39 flats with developers stating they would prefer a "mix type of homes including 2 bedroom apartments". Plans also state that some of the apartments may include balconies.
A request for pre-application advice in respect of 40 apartments on the site was submitted to Cardiff Council on January 12.
A meeting took place with the planning officer on January 29 and a written response to the submitted scheme was received on 16th February 2021.
The response set out requirements to support a planning application – Acoustic Report and Ecology Assessment as well as areas where the design needed further consideration in particular the scale of the development, the relationship with development to the corner of Agate Street, Pearl Street and Splott Road and the need to have more active frontages on Agate and Pearl Streets.
As a result of this initial assessment further work was undertaken in respect of the design. The revised design was considered by officers at Cardiff Council.
It was considered that the new proposal dealt well with privacy distances, that similar scale development had been approved elsewhere in similar circumstances and that the proposals were an improvement to the previously approved scheme.
The site was previously occupied by Splott Cinema which opened in 1913 with a seating capacity of 750, later extended and modified in the 1920s and 30s.
The building was later reopened in 1961 as a Bingo Hall before being closed in 2009. The building was subsequently used as a community-building/Christian centre.
Planning Permission has recently been granted for a new Supported Living Centre to be built opposite the proposed new development.
Plans for the new apartments include consideration for the safe and secure storage of bikes. Developers say that there will be one bike allocation per bedroom space.
Should each apartment have two bedrooms, this would equate to around 68 bike spaces. No vehicle parking will be allocated to the flats.
As well as the apartments, plans say that the enclosed area to the rear of the block will be a multifunctional sustainable garden, encouraging community interaction, promoting healthy eating and allowing ecology and biodiversity to flourish.
It is thought that the area is aimed to offer residents space to sit, relax, exercise or grow vegetables and experience nature.
The last time a proposal was submitted for flats in the area, it was opposed by several residents.
They raised concerns about the lack of parking and increased traffic. There were also complaints about the design and questions about the need for further flats to be built.
The consultation will end on June 17 and can be found here.
