A developer is hoping to be allowed to turn a Brighton office block which has lain empty for years into shops.
Threadneedle Asset Management Ltd says that the basement and ground floor of Lyndean House in Queen’s Road have been unused since January 2010, despite refurbishment and extensive marketing.
It has now applied for planning permission to change the use to retail, plus build a single storey rear extension and convert one of the ground floor windows into a door.
Threadneedle’s agent Stiles Harold Williams said: “The ground floor and lower ground floor are particularly unattractive to office occupiers.
“The ground floor has a retail frontage with large windows. This is not beneficial for office occupiers who prefer privacy from the large number of pedestrians on Queens Road.
“The lower ground floor has poor natural light with no windows on the east side of the building and windows along the west side that do not allow much light in.
“We have now been marketing for just under five years and despite much effort no office occupiers have been found.
“This building needs to make some contribution to the local economy as in Land Economy terms this building is lying fallow.”
A previous application to change the use to retail was rejected in 2011 on the grounds that Threadneedle had not shown the office space was not in demand, and for a lack of cycle parking and impact on the surrounding area.
Stiles Harold Williams argues that the continued lack of interest, increase in nearby cycle parking and limited changes to the frontage of the building now proposed means the application should be granted.
Before 2010, the offices were occupied by Euro Cash VAT.
If approved, this will be the third time city centre office space has been converted to other uses this year.
Plans to turn Crown House in Upper North Street, Brighton, into 45 flats and Sussex House in Western Road, Hove, into nine flats have both been approved by Brighton and Hove City Council.
Perhaps Jo Wadsworth could tell us when these offices were originally built and by whom? Doubtless at the time they were heralded as an “exciting new office development” that would “revitalise the Queen’s Road corridor in the heart of the city” etc etc etc.
From the planning application:
Lyndean House, 43/46 Queens Road was constructed in the 1980s and totals circa 12,000 sq ft.
On completion, the intention was to secure an office occupier for the entire building.
However, the building was let on a floor by floor basis and this has been the pattern over a number of years.
I was still at primary school in the 80s, so not aware of how it was marketed back then, sorry.
Doubtless the Argus ran a thrilling story on it back in the day. If only their backissues were available to search online. They’ve probably thrown then all in the bin though.
I wonder what was on that site before the 1980s?
My father rented the ground and lower ground floor of this office building for most of the 1980’s. I think his company was the first tenant. The Company called Vergecourt sold IBM, Compaq, Amstrad and Apple computers to corporate clients. BT Cellnet rented the first floor. I spent my first years after school learning the computer trade in Lyndean House thanks to my Dad. Now I have my own business Headquarters in Hove, opposite PC World. A change to retail seems appropriate given its been empty most of its life.
Vergecourt .. Cricky.. Didn’t they move down back of Sainsbury Lewes road ir from there.