PLANS to convert two units in the Glass Works into one in a bid to attract a national retailer to the town following ‘interest’ from an unnamed firm have been approved by the planning board.
The units - SU11 and SU12 - are situated adjacent to River Island and The Fragrance Shop in the main area of the shopping centre.
They have been used by the council’s events team as temporary display spaces during town centre events and for storage for fitting out other units.
The plans were submitted to the planning board in May
But the application has now been approved to convert the two units into one following interest from a national retailer.
A planning report states: “The units are located within the Glass Works, which runs between Cheapside and May Day Green in Barnsley.
“The centre was officially opened in September 2021, providing a partially covered, modern shopping mall in the heart of the town centre.
“The centre is already home to several major high street retailers, some of whom have relocated from other premises in the town and others that have chosen to add Barnsley to their national portfolio.
“The vacant units, to which this application relates, are sited adjacent to River Island and The Fragrance Shop on the main mall.
“The units have been left open internally to provide flexibility to prospective tenants.
“Barnsley Council’s estates department have been working closely with their commercial agents to seek out suitable retailers for the vacant units.
“The recent acquisition of the Alhambra by Barnsley Council has prompted the development of a new town centre lettings strategy, which includes the Alhambra, Cheapside and the Glass Works.
“Recent interest from a medium-sized national retailer has prompted the proposed changes to formally combine the two existing units into one.
“Further to the above, unit SU13 was partially taken by The Fragrance Shop, leaving around 70m2 of retail space to the rear.
“As this space has a ready formed entrance from the mall, the council have decided to expand the smaller kiosk unit provision, which will see this space re-named as K05.”
An officer report states that no comments were received from the highways department or local councillors during the consultation stage.
The report said: “The development site does not benefit from off-street parking arrangements and none are proposed.
“However, the development site is considered to be in a sustainable location adjacent to the Barnsley Interchange and the Tommy Taylor Memorial Bridge and is readily and easily accessible by various modes of transport.
“There are also public car park options within the locality.
“The proposal is therefore not considered to be prejudicial to highway safety.
“Considering the commercial nature of the surrounding area and limited nearby residential uses, it is considered that the proposal would have a minimal impact on amenity through potentially increased noise and activity levels.
“There could be some potential disturbance and disruption because of construction works, and whilst any potential impact is anticipated to be temporary, should the application be approved, a condition could be used to control construction hours.”
