Exchange House flats proposal reduced from 21 storeys to 16

There are plans to demolish Exchange House on Watford ring road and build new flats in its place.

Originally, the proposals submitted to Watford Borough Council were for a C-shaped building of 250 flats rising up to 18 storeys.

This was later revised to 263 flats up to 21 storeys high and a decision on the scheme was expected to be made in March this year.

CGI showing the proposed flats. Image shows scheme before it was reduced in height to 16 storeys

However, applicants 60 Exchange Road Ltd withdrew the item from a planning agenda and have since gone away and made some changes to the application.

The new plans to be considered by the council will be for a building of up to 16 storeys containing 261 flats.

At its lowest, the building will be five storeys, while there will a ground floor space for community and leisure use.

Peter Jeffery, planning consultant with Sphere25, said: "The revised application seeks to develop a building of between five and 16 storeys containing 261 apartments, a ground floor unit of 74sqm for community/leisure use and a publicly accessible amenity area and children’s play space.

"The scheme design has evolved over the last two years following ongoing feedback received from the major application review panel, Watford’s place shaping panel and the wider community.

"Further amendments were made to the proposals following a review of the officer’s draft committee report in relation to the previous 21 storey scheme, as it was felt that a lower rise scheme would be a better fit for the area and would better meet the council’s aspirations."

Exchange House CGI

Mr Jeffery added: "The applicant team has worked hard on the scheme for over two years to achieve the best proposal, so we really wanted to get it right and not present the wrong approach to the planning committee."

Exchange House currently

The application proposes that 20 per cent of the development is provided for affordable housing, while a total of 12 parking spaces will be provided with the development designed to be 'car-free'.

Mr Jeffery added: "The existing building has prior approval granted for a change of use from office to create 126 apartments. If this prior approval scheme were to be developed, then no affordable housing or other community benefits included within the proposals would be delivered.

"We believe the application has addressed any issues raised during extensive consultation and will deliver significant community benefits and make a fantastic contribution to the regeneration of the borough."

The plans can be found on the council's planning portal. The reference number is 20/00671/FULM