Church raises concerns over Shrewsbury town centre Travelodge plan

The Heart of England Baptist Association has written to Shropshire Council to set out its thoughts on plans to build a Travelodge on the Barker Street Car Park.

The association represents the Claremont Baptist Church, which sits next to the car park and potential development site.

The proposal, from Morris Property, is for a four-storey 436sq m hotel with ground-floor retail space on the car park between the Baptist Church and Grade II-listed Rowley's House.

In a letter to Shropshire Council, baptist association administrator Karen Martindale said there were specific elements of the plan which they would like addressed.

However, she said that they were not opposed to the idea of the car park being developed.

"The church is not able to and has no wish to object to the principle of development in a general sense as it was part of our refurbishment agreement," she said.

"The church members have acknowledged this and recorded this in its recent meeting minutes."

She added: "The church does have concerns regarding practical aspects of the development and how this may impact visibility and access to our building for the coffee shop patrons and those other organisations who use the upper rooms."

In her letter Ms Martindale said the plans should have included detail of any discussions prior to the proposal being submitted.

She said: "There is no adequate statement of the pre-applications consultations already carried out with neighbours and their outcome. It seems to us that this is a less than appropriate approach to the application process in an urban centre and is classic 'more haste, less speed' error."

The letter also suggests changes to the design of the building as it faces the church, describing the roof line as "jarring".

It states: "The church is pleased to note the tall external windows in the adjoining part of the Claremont Street frontage but would prefer them to have round tops similar to the church frontage. The mansard roof arrangement above this seems a jarring and over dominant detail."

Other concerns included in the letter are the need to address potential for anti-social behaviour in the area behind the church and the Travelodge, and for another look at a plan for service bay for vehicles delivering to the church, hotel and other premises.

The proposal has already attracted opposition from Historic England, while Shropshire Council's own highways department has also said it cannot support the plans without changes.

A design and access statement prepared by AHR Architects has, however, outlined how the plans could be a boost for the town, aiding tourism.

It said: "It is clear to the client and design team that the redevelopment of the Barker Street car park site presents a real opportunity for the growth of visitor numbers to Shrewsbury, for the continuation of the regeneration of the west end (started by the Tannery development, 2019) and will be of benefit to the town as a whole.

"This unique opportunity will undoubtedly be a catalyst to the revitalisation of the other vacant plots and underused buildings in the area, particularly Rowley House and Mansion, and will be a positive addition to Shrewsbury’s built environment."

A decision on the plans will be taken by Shropshire Council.