Student flats plan gets the go-ahead (From Oxford Mail)
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Student flats plan gets the go-ahead
7:00pm Saturday 2nd April 2011 in News By Chris Buratta
A 300-BED student complex will be built in Headington despite fears its elderly neighbours will be kept awake at night.
Berkeley Homes won permission to build 313 rooms for Oxford Brookes University students on the former Dorset House School site in London Road.
Oxford City Council gave the go-ahead despite pleas from residents, including those in retirement flats and a nursing home, that late night student noise would lead to a clash of lifestyles.
Developers and council planners said 24-hour on-site wardens would manage any rowdy behaviour.
But Sandy Russell, the general manger of the McMaster House retirement flats, said her residents deserved peace and quiet. She told the council’s strategic development control committee the site for her flats had been chosen as it was a “quiet location in which people could enjoy their twilight years”.
Mrs Russell said the building work would disturb residents, who have an average age of 86.
She added: “It will be followed by a lifetime of students returning at all hours.
“We all know large groups of youngsters can be noisy, especially if they have had a few drinks.
“I appeal on behalf of our residents. They fought wars for us and the least we can do is let them live out their years in peace and quiet.”
Her views were echoed by Catherine Grogan, chief executive of the neighbouring St Luke’s Hospital nursing home. The proposal is for a lodge house and two accommodation blocks on the site with three and four storey elements.
In accordance with city planning regulations, students would not be allowed to run cars.
But residents in Latimer Grange also told the council’s strategic development control committee the four storey blocks of student rooms were overbearing.
However councillors backed their planning officers’ recommendation for approval, although they have made it a condition that a small area of the site is redesigned to prevent overlooking.
A management agreement, including wardens, will also need to be agreed by the council and financial contributions will be made to traffic improvement measures and local libraries.
Steven Sensecall, the agent acting for Berkeley Homes, said: “This is wholly appropriate use for the site. It is hard to think of a better site between Brookes and the Headington shops.”
Comments(22)
museli
says...
9:50pm Sat 2 Apr 11
capt.stout
says...
11:51pm Sat 2 Apr 11
ic and city council want. A whole city full of students and non-locals, with absentee landlords to run the houses that are left,
to be used as drug farms.
listen2me47
says...
2:12am Sun 3 Apr 11
Mr Peter Mcvay
says...
4:10am Sun 3 Apr 11
.......
And there lies the problem. The onsite wardens have no power when their p!ssed up little darlings are shouting their heads off on their way home from The White Horse, or The Student Union.
o x tree
says...
5:44am Sun 3 Apr 11
SNJ
says...
7:52am Sun 3 Apr 11
The replacement certainly is an eyesore. And I doubt whether there will be fewer student houses in Headington as a result.
Victor Meldrew2
says...
8:40am Sun 3 Apr 11
Howard-3
says...
1:01pm Sun 3 Apr 11
Another great building by Albert Speer, by the way!
riman09
says...
2:18pm Sun 3 Apr 11
They do not party in Headington, they all; go to Oxford City of Cowley Road.
ox-cabby
says...
5:54pm Sun 3 Apr 11
THEY ARE IDIOTS, not all, but some. They are loud, fussy, argumentative, patronizing and above all, some CANNOT handle their drink. I've been a cabby for 19 years and on a weekend, a growing number of them change into zombies and are the worst of the worst!....they always find time to complain about the fare when they've just spent loads on drinks.
The local residents have truly HAD IT. Year upon year, the discipline is disappearing from young folks and a growing majority of the university students are no different, they're getting worse.
Many people i know WILL NOT give accommodation to students because of the concerns raised here.
Tell you what, they should only accommodate Masters or Phd students there.
Finally, i don't want people coming on here and telling me that my job depends on students, because it doesn't. I'm my own boss!
Mr Peter Mcvay
says...
9:44pm Sun 3 Apr 11
Howard-3 wrote:I agree Howard, it makes it much easier when you know exactly where they are, know what I mean. Rich+Naive+Students=
It's great to have more students living near to their place of study, and helping the local economy.
Another great building by Albert Speer, by the way!
Happy Times for us locals. Well done for supporting this Howie old chap.
Andrew:Oxford
says...
11:00pm Sun 3 Apr 11
listen2me47 wrote:It's about time that Blackbird Leys was "gentrified" with student accommodation.
Haven't you locals known for years & years, that the students run the city & always get what they want. You're just a home owner/resident, who has no say to anything that goes on.
ox-cabby
says...
11:04pm Sun 3 Apr 11
But unfortunately we as residents are snookered! We Have Oxford Uni and Brookes Uni and both are very popular, of course Oxford being more. This means thousands of students will have to be housed anywhere and everywhere.
No one cares about residents anymore. Its all about money. I am beginning to feel a little squeezed here!
Madi50n
says...
9:29am Mon 4 Apr 11
I know a lot of people don't like the fact that Oxford has thousands of students, unfortunately, as Oxford is, first and foremost, a university city, that's never going to change.
Those students need somewhere to live, if neither of the universities were allowed to house them in purpose built housing, then they would have to rent housing that people also complain about them taking away from residents.
newcy
says...
9:52am Mon 4 Apr 11
The amount of student housing being developed by the universities, so far, has not reduced the amount of private housing that is being let to students only -in fact this figure is only increasing. Admittedly, as tuition fees soar, Oxford Brookes is likely to see a fall in student numbers -the majority of Oxford University students is likley to continue to rise as money is not an issue for the majority of its students, and the number from 'ordinary' backgrounds attending the university is negligible -so when that number becomes 0 (and won't the University love that?!) -we won't see a visible drop in numbers.
I have to say the worst behaviour I have seen over the last ten years in the city has been from Oxford University students -though there is a growing number of Brookes students who do not respect the city or the local people, but I would still say that this appears to be a small minority.
CLLR KEN TIWARI
says...
12:29pm Mon 4 Apr 11
go to University, College-or-Highier-Q
ualification, may be you dide'nt had the chance to go for it, many reasons ?
We all wants higher Qualification, if we could get them, subject-to both of our parents were there for us, and ability to go for university/college++
+++
For me both of my parents were killed in our Army-Uniforms, not only defending our Crown & country, but the lives of-millions European-Jewish-&-ot
her good people, but with the help of- TU's.Ruskin was there for me,
no one should complain against students, students are our future, -
God bless them all; ken.........
Mr Peter Mcvay
says...
6:47pm Mon 4 Apr 11
Madi50n wrote:Madison, not very good on your history are you. OXFORD is firstly a TOWN, the parasites of the University followed a few hundred years later. The city status came far later, but we Oxonians are the locals and the Uni and Poly the feral interlopers.
I love the fact that people are posting about "Rich" kids. Do only rich kids go to Oxford Brookes too now?
I know a lot of people don't like the fact that Oxford has thousands of students, unfortunately, as Oxford is, first and foremost, a university city, that's never going to change.
Those students need somewhere to live, if neither of the universities were allowed to house them in purpose built housing, then they would have to rent housing that people also complain about them taking away from residents.
Headington mum
says...
9:35pm Mon 4 Apr 11
Evie G
says...
1:52pm Tue 5 Apr 11
There are already several purpose built blocks in Headington, many with the proviso that students cannot bring cars but upon complaining to one of these wardens (who are just older students by the way) that I cannot park in my street because all of the spaces are taken by their residents I was told that they could not do anything about it, that is just advisory and not a rule.
I live opposite two of these buildings and since they have been there the noise (especially in the early hours) has risen greatly. I am woken constantly throughout the week (everyday's a party day), they park on my forecourt and tell me to f*ck off when I ask them to move. The police are not interested and the University couldn’t care less about residents.
Mr Peter Mcvay
says...
6:31pm Thu 7 Apr 11
Hob
says...
1:04pm Fri 8 Apr 11
Mr Peter Mcvay wrote:You make yourself out to be some kind of Oxford gentry - That would imply that your mum DID know who ur Daddy was....
Madi50n wrote: I love the fact that people are posting about "Rich" kids. Do only rich kids go to Oxford Brookes too now? I know a lot of people don't like the fact that Oxford has thousands of students, unfortunately, as Oxford is, first and foremost, a university city, that's never going to change. Those students need somewhere to live, if neither of the universities were allowed to house them in purpose built housing, then they would have to rent housing that people also complain about them taking away from residents.Madison, not very good on your history are you. OXFORD is firstly a TOWN, the parasites of the University followed a few hundred years later. The city status came far later, but we Oxonians are the locals and the Uni and Poly the feral interlopers.
T Chandler says...
9:20pm Sat 2 Apr 11