PLANS for a food van, new office space and automatic gates at university accommodation are among the latest proposals to be examined by Oxford City Council.

• Food van

An application for a food van in Cowley has been refused planning permission.

The van was planned to be situated at 138 Oxford Road, which ‘sits on a prominent corner plot facing Oxford Road, with Cleveland Drive to the side’.

However, outlining why the application was refused, a council report notes: “The address given in the application form and the red line site location plan fail to definitively identify the site, but from the information given, it appears to relate to a piece of land between the side of 138 Oxford Road and Cleveland Drive.”

Expanding on reasons for refusal, the report adds: “The application has provided no information as to why the proposed development would not result in the level of noise and disturbance typically associated with a hot food takeaway van would not occur in this case, nor has any information been provided as to how the level of noise would be limited, mitigated or ameliorated.

“For this reason, the level of noise and disturbance associated with the development would likely be similar to that associated with similar operations, which in this case would be unacceptably harmful to the residential amenity of surrounding occupiers.

“The application fails to explain or demonstrate how the level of odours, smells and fumes typically associated with hot food takeaway vans would not be the case in regards to the proposed development.”

Permission was sought for the kebab van to operate between 11am and 10pm daily, with reduced hours on Sundays and bank holidays.

Planning reference: 21/01275/FUL

• New office space

Two new two-storey buildings have been given the green light at Littlemore Park.

The buildings will provide 3,500sqm of ‘flexible commercial floorspace’. 

The proposed development will provide ‘grow on’ space for companies looking to expand out of innovation and incubator space, and is designed for companies that are not at the scale to take entire floors within larger HQ style buildings.

The new employment hub will be named Oxford Innovation Park, with the office and laboratory space to be targeted towards life science and technology companies.

Planning reference: 20/02672/FUL

• Gates replacement

Steel gates at university accommodation will be replaced with automated ones after planning permission was granted.

The manual gates in Longwall Street have served Magdalen College students since they were erected in 2004.

However, the college has sought to replace the gates, between Longwall House and 1 Longwall Street, in order to support wheelchair users.

Currently, the student houses are undergoing a programme of upgrading, including the provision of accessible rooms to the ground floor.

While this is taking place, the college looked to complete access for wheelchair and limited mobility users, and change the design of the gates.

The existing gates were installed almost 20 years ago as part of a programme of works to the student rooms.

The proposed new gates are metal with uprights, with posts attached to the sides of the listed buildings being of the sturdy construction required to allow for automation to work.

A design has been proposed with college crests so as to link the buildings with Magdalen opposite.

The Chronicles of Narnia author C.S. Lewis, Private Eye editor Ian Hislop and former Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osbourne are all alumni of Magdalen.

Planning reference: 21/02011/LBC

• For the latest planning applications in Oxford, visit the city council website at: oxford.gov.uk/info/20066/planning_applications