Former ‘TE Roberts’ King Street Store To Be Demolished

Proposals to demolish a former electronics store and use the land to create office space are to be approved by councillors.

The former TE Roberts store on King Street is recommended to be demolished and replaced with modern office space, with Wrexham’s Planning Committee due to discuss the proposals on Monday evening.

In January we reported that an application to convert the former electronics store into office space had been submitted by Unite. At the time the application was submitted, TE Roberts was still trading in the town centre; however the unit has remained vacant since the retailer closed its doors earlier this year.

It is hoped that the demolition of the existing building will create a ‘scope for a more aesthetically pleasing, sympathetically designed’ building.

Initially the application put forward by Unite was to refurbish the T.E. Roberts store, however the report goes onto note: “Although it was originally intended for the building to be refurbished to allow a change of use of the building further investigations have confirmed that the existing structure would require extensive repairs and alterations.

“A structural report as submitted with this application confirms that there are a number of structural defects such as cracking and spalling arising from poor quality brickwork and concrete.

“In addition to the poor condition of the building, it is also noted that the building does not have any architectural or historic interest, and this is further endorsed in the adopted character assessment and management plan.

The Unite office space would consist of three storeys, will several offices, meeting and training rooms and also a staff room. Parking will also be provided at the rear of the building.

Aesthetically the design seeks to deliver a ‘shop front’ appearance to its new ground floor area, and although this does not include traditional shop front features – the chosen design splits the front elevation into a design that respects narrower proportions which is more consistent of traditional buildings further along King Street.

One interesting point we spotted in the planning document is a comment regarding how ‘King Street is not defined as a shopping street’. The report goes onto add that because of this, the ground floor area does not need to incorporate retail use. However the design does not ‘preclude the possibility for the ground floor area to be used for retail use, if required in the future’.

The comment links to one made in the initial demolition application, where the Design and Access Statement noted: “The site is outside of the central retail area defined by Wrexham Council, and is on the peripheral of the commercial district. The council has indicated a preference for town centre office development outside of the central shopping zone.”

Over the years there has been a deterioration in the number of retail units occupying King Street, with TE Roberts being the only retail store left on the street.

The application to demolish the building and replace with office space is one of many applications that have been submitted for King Street in recent months. Over the summer Wrexham.com reported that an application to extend an existing King Street solicitors had been put forward. Proposals to convert two floors of a further King Street property into apartments was also submitted.

The application will go before Wrexham’s Planning Committee on Monday night at 6:30pm. If you can’t make the meeting, it will also be broadcast live on Wrexham Council’s website.