Eyesore in Ford Street, Derby, could make way for 'unique' show home to entice Europe's elite
EUROPE'S wealthy elite could soon be coming to stay in a Derby show home to experience bespoke fitted kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms, if a planning application is successful.
Fitted furniture specialist Osborne of Ilkeston wants to demolish derelict pub the Late Bar in Ford Street, Derby, and replace it with the showhome, plus apartments, at a cost of about £2 million.
The firm's owner, Paul Osborne, has owned the two-storey, detached site for a "couple of years", and said that the new venture was an "unique" idea.
He said that anybody would be able to come and stay in the show home, but added that much of the firm's sales were made to wealthy people in Europe.
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He said: "It gives people the opportunity to experience a bedroom or a bathroom before they buy it. Individuals, families or couples would be able to come and stay for a weekend and, for example, try out a bed or oven themselves.
"People who perhaps fly here on business could stay there as part of their trip."
Asked if he expected visitors to include the continent's super-rich, Mr Osborne said: "Hopefully they will have a few bob."
He said his company, which has operated in Ilkeston for 30 years, sold one-off fittings rather than selling in bulk so that visitors would most likely be people buying for their own homes.
Mr Osborne said the Late Bar was a "terrible eyesore for Derby" and added that he hoped the council would see it was time for it to be knocked down.
He said: "We've been trying to remove it but to do that we need to have a successful planning application.
"It's an absolute wreck inside as well. We've had squatters living there.
"If we get permission I'd like to knock it down this spring."
The company has applied for permission to demolish the pub, and create the showroom, a secure parking garage and three apartments.
Mr Osborne said that the apartments would be separate permanent living accommodation.
Councillor Gulfraz Nawaz, who represents Arboretum ward, where the Late Bar is located, said he thought that the application was "an excellent idea".
He said: "A lot of that area has been developed recently so it sticks out like a sore thumb.
"It would be a good thing if we had a business there which could create new jobs."
Mr Nawaz said he was not aware that the building had attracted anti-social behaviour.
A final decision on the application is expected to be made by the city's council's planning control committee on Tuesday, March 19.
20 Comments
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by stanvax
Friday, February 08 2013, 8:49PM
“The real euesore is the the orange building - truly gruesome”
by Derby400
Thursday, February 07 2013, 10:41PM
“The old Vine Inn - meeting place for Mods for years and years - I remember the scooters lined up outside back in the 80s. Went in again once in the 90s without realising it had been turned into a gay bar!”
by HateTheGame
Thursday, February 07 2013, 7:57PM
“"How sick to announce this "luxury" development on the same day that up to 800 homeless people are conndemned to living on the streets. What a sick society we live in."
This story was published this morning. The homeless story was published this afternoon. How is it sick? This business could create jobs and revenue for the council to spend on homeless care.”
by Hackneytom
Thursday, February 07 2013, 6:33PM
“EUROPE'S wealthy elite could soon be coming to stay in a Derby show home"
Don't know about the wealthy elite but there'll be 29 million Bulgarians queuing up by the end of this year!”
by DerbyResident
Thursday, February 07 2013, 6:27PM
“"sillynow", you obviousdly don't have a social concience.”
by J-Bone
Thursday, February 07 2013, 4:34PM
“"EUROPE'S wealthy elite could soon be coming to stay in a Derby show home..."
Europe's wealthy elite could also take a severe [collective] blow to the head and begin to freely distribute their wealth amongst the rest of us too.
Both scenarios are 'possible', but I know which one is more likely to happen first.
N.B. is this what people mean when I hear them mention 'holidays in loo'?”
by sillynow
Thursday, February 07 2013, 4:19PM
“hear hear DerbyResident, how sick to announce this.
And, actually, how dare anyone buy anything which someone else might consider even slightly "luxurious" on a day when someone somewhere has something unfortunate happen to them.
The sickos.”
by DerbyResident
Thursday, February 07 2013, 3:33PM
“How sick to announce this "luxury" development on the same day that up to 800 homeless people are conndemned to living on the streets. What a sick society we live in.”
by HillaryGF
Thursday, February 07 2013, 3:29PM
“You are all wrong about the "Orange" building going green, It is designed to stay shiny. The polished copper has a polymer film to protect it from weathering. When I found this out my own reaction is that it will look terrible once the polymer starts to break down, it will be neither shiny, nor verdigris, it will be blotchy and I dare say will become an eyesore.”
by Derby_born
Thursday, February 07 2013, 11:47AM
“Friar Gate Studios needed a further £700,000 spending on it to make it soundproof against the traffic on Ford Street. The Late Bar failure was more to do with the clientelle than its location, it depended on the students who had found alternative places to drink. A cafe recently opened in the Friagate Studios, and I gave read that this is proving successful as a place for the tenants of Friar Gate Studios to have their lunch.
At the moment there is a large amount of vacant office space in the area. Roman and Saxon House have been vacated by the Council and the old HMRC tax office in Agard Street has a to-let sign on it, this along with plenty of other to-let signs on smaller offices along Friar Gate.
If all these spaces ever find tenants, there will be an opening for more places to dine as the area becomes populated with office workers (probably unlikely given the history of the area).
I am sure that a far better location could be found for a show home than a site next to a busy, noisy road and opposite an ugly empty office block.”