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davieG

Is the City of Leicester a dump?

By davieG, in General Chat

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Trav Le Bleu

Trav Le Bleu

Posted
Posted

If anyone wants to see a dump take a trip to Bishop Auckland. Don't think I've seen a worse town that actually has a large historical building to create tourism.

davieG

davieG

Posted
  • Author
Posted

More student accommodation

 

 

Council sells Leicester's old disused Bishop Street post office - for a £600,000 loss

By danjmartin  |  Posted: May 18, 2015

10088674-large.jpg
 

Inside the old Bishop Street Post Office

 Comments (22)

Leicester City Council have finally completed the sale of the old Bishop Street Post office for £800,000.

The authority purchased the property in 2008 intending to convert it into a new customer service centre.

The plan was however eventually deemed too expensive and abandoned so the property has remained disused, costing some £30,000 a year in service charges, security costs and business rates.

The property was originally bought for £1.4 million so, with the £600,000 lost on that value and the estimated £200,000 costs since, the episode has cost the taxpayer some £800,000.

  •  

It is now set to be brought back into use as student accommodation.

It will be converted into 75 flats by new owners IMAP Student Properties Ltd, which already has planning permission for the revamp.

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said "I have always thought it a mistake to buy that building as a customer service centre - particularly when you see how effective the site we eventually chose, in Granby Street, has become.

"It was far too expensive."

Sir Peter added: "£800,000 is a realistic price given that the new owners have to spend a lot of money converting it.

"I am very satisfied.

"This is a wonderful 1930s building in a prime location that has been empty since the post office moved out.

"I'm very pleased that we've been able to sell it to a buyer who is committed to bringing it back into use as quickly as possible – and whose investment in this handsome building will bring new life to Town Hall Square."

Tory opposition councillor Ross Grant said: "It's disappointing to sell the building for so much less than the council paid for it - having not got any use out of it.

"When you add in all the costs of keeping it secure and the rates there is an awful lot of public money wasted at a time when we need to be very careful with our resources.

"The mayor will no doubt blame the previous Labour administration who did make a mistake rushing in a buying it and didn't get a good deal.

"It is good that it will be brought back into use but that post office was a place of business serving city centre companies

"Now it will be yet more student flats."

IMAP Student Properties Ltd has already completed a 105-bed student accommodation scheme inLoughborough, and obtained planning permission for a 117-bed development on Leicester's Dover Street.

The £800,000 received from the sale of the building will go towards major projects supporting the city's regeneration – such as the refurbishment of Leicester Market and the Connecting Leicester programme.


Read more: http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Council-sells-Leicester-s-old-dissed-Bishop/story-26523679-detail/story.html#ixzz3aZiKFHnY 
Follow us: @Leicester_Merc on Twitter | leicestermercury on Facebook

srbfox

srbfox

Posted
Posted

<p>

More student accommodation

Council sells Leicester's old disused Bishop Street post office - for a £600,000 loss

By danjmartin | Posted: May 18, 2015

10088674-large.jpg

Inside the old Bishop Street Post Office

Comments (22)

Leicester City Council have finally completed the sale of the old Bishop Street Post office for £800,000.

The authority purchased the property in 2008 intending to convert it into a new customer service centre.

The plan was however eventually deemed too expensive and abandoned so the property has remained disused, costing some £30,000 a year in service charges, security costs and business rates.

The property was originally bought for £1.4 million so, with the £600,000 lost on that value and the estimated £200,000 costs since, the episode has cost the taxpayer some £800,000.

It is now set to be brought back into use as student accommodation.

It will be converted into 75 flats by new owners IMAP Student Properties Ltd, which already has planning permission for the revamp.

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said "I have always thought it a mistake to buy that building as a customer service centre - particularly when you see how effective the site we eventually chose, in Granby Street, has become.

"It was far too expensive."

Sir Peter added: "£800,000 is a realistic price given that the new owners have to spend a lot of money converting it.

"I am very satisfied.

"This is a wonderful 1930s building in a prime location that has been empty since the post office moved out.

"I'm very pleased that we've been able to sell it to a buyer who is committed to bringing it back into use as quickly as possible – and whose investment in this handsome building will bring new life to Town Hall Square."

Tory opposition councillor Ross Grant said: "It's disappointing to sell the building for so much less than the council paid for it - having not got any use out of it.

"When you add in all the costs of keeping it secure and the rates there is an awful lot of public money wasted at a time when we need to be very careful with our resources.

"The mayor will no doubt blame the previous Labour administration who did make a mistake rushing in a buying it and didn't get a good deal.

"It is good that it will be brought back into use but that post office was a place of business serving city centre companies

"Now it will be yet more student flats."

IMAP Student Properties Ltd has already completed a 105-bed student accommodation scheme inLoughborough, and obtained planning permission for a 117-bed development on Leicester's Dover Street.

The £800,000 received from the sale of the building will go towards major projects supporting the city's regeneration – such as the refurbishment of Leicester Market and the Connecting Leicester programme.

Read more: http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Council-sells-Leicester-s-old-dissed-Bishop/story-26523679-detail/story.html#ixzz3aZiKFHnY

Follow us: @Leicester_Merc on Twitter | leicestermercury on Facebook

Great, more student accommodation

Darkon84

Darkon84

Posted
Posted

Great, more student accommodation

 

It'll be designated for that but probably never happen. Same as plenty of others, it all seems a great idea, the plans will g out to engineers etc who spend loads of time creating the new services, etc, and then they'll discover there isn't enough money to do it. Same old story.

 

Surely there is a better use for the building anyway, it's grand inside! I remember when I was a kid, being in awe at the place.  

MooseBreath

MooseBreath

Posted
Posted

Surely there'll be a point where we have too much student accommodation

Private developers will do their research (unlike the council who obviously did none whatsoever... what a farcical purchase), so if there's no more demand there will be no more building.

Darkon84

Darkon84

Posted
Posted

Surely there'll be a point where we have too much student accommodation

 

That's my point. All these places are being bought up with the statement that they will be student accommodation, but they never actually make it to the building or renovation stage. There are two plots on Newark Street and Oxford Street in town as an example, which I have worked on, but never come to fruition. Saying it will be student accommodation just seems to be the 'in thing' to say which gets them through the initial phase of acceptance.

Voll Blau

Voll Blau

Posted
Posted

The only decent Walkabout in the country is Blackpool. Even then the drinks are overpriced and wank once the novelty of having Aussie lager has worn off.

 

Tragic how people would go to one as part of a standard night out.

  • 4 weeks later...
davieG

davieG

Posted
  • Author
Posted

A street in the city centre has been named in the UK's top 50 crime hotspots.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Gravel Street was named in the Mirror newspaper as the 40th most crime-ridden street in the UK.

The street, off Church Gate, is home to three nightclubs, St Margaret's bus station and a number of takeaways and draws thousands of evening visitors.

The top 50 list was based on official crime statistics for the street and the surrounding area from April.


Read more: http://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/Leicester-city-centre-street-named-UK-s-crime/story-26678719-detail/story.html#ixzz3cjnhszbX 
Follow us: @Leicester_Merc on Twitter | leicestermercury on Facebook

Freesolo

Freesolo

Posted
Posted

For me living in a 60/70k population town I think Leicester is great, its got everything that my town hasn't. Decent Shopping, Strip Club's, and The greatest football team on earth

Ollie93

Ollie93

Posted
Posted (edited)

For me living in a 60/70k population town I think Leicester is great, its got everything that my town hasn't. Decent Shopping, Strip Club's, and The greatest football team on earth

 

That's because you're from Corby, which is probably the worst town I've ever been to (no offence).

 

Every city has it's good spots and bad spots but you only have to go to Machester/Birmingham/Liverpool/Sheffield to realise even our nicest areas aren't really that nice.

Edited by Ollie93
Freesolo

Freesolo

Posted
Posted

That's because you're from Corby, which is probably the worst town I've ever been to (no offence).

 

Its not all that bad anymore mate has changed a lot in the past 5 years for the better

Ollie93

Ollie93

Posted
Posted

Its not all that bad anymore mate has changed a lot in the past 5 years for the better

 

To be fair its been about 6 years since I've been, used to know a few lads from there who I went to college with, whenever I went there something always seemed to kick off.

Guest MattP

Guest MattP

Posted
Posted (edited)

Two people killed on Saturday at the weekend as a consequence of violent assault, that's horrific.

 

Having not been out at night properly for a good few years, has it got more violent or is this just unlucky for something that to happen twice in a night.

Edited by MattP

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