Due to the width of the streets, this block will not meet the council’s Residential Design SPD policy where distances between habitable windows are required to be set 22m apart, all rooms facing to Verney Street and Summerland Street fail this test. The proposed building seems to upscale the former two-storey nightclub into a six-storey block, producing a poor contextual fit. The extensive use of dark brick at this scale has previously been judged unacceptable in Exeter in the recently approved application for PBSA at Clarendon House. The roofscape lacks interest and fails to respond to neighbouring buildings. The 18 sqm studio-only model provides no shared kitchen or dining facilities on any floor. Most amenity space is confined to the ground and fifth floors, with the largest space offering only a ‘Tea Point for light meals’. We also commented on social amenity, the lack of active frontage, the provision for disabled people and cycling.
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