Decision due on 30-storey apartment tower on Cardiff’s Guildford Crescent

Alex Seabrook, local democracy reporter

A decision is due on whether to approve plans for a 30-storey apartment tower on Guildford Crescent in Cardiff.

The tower would include 140 one-bed flats and 132 two-bed flats and would be built on the former site of a popular music venue.

Cardiff council’s planning committee is set to vote on giving permission for the tower on Wednesday, November 3.

The flats would be classed as ‘build-to-rent’ meaning they would all be owned by an institutional investor and rented out to tenants. No car parking would be available.

Guildford Crescent used to be home to six 19th-century buildings, which were occupied by restaurants and the Gwdihw music venue. These buildings were demolished in September 2019, despite 1,000 people marching and 20,000 petitioning against the demolition plans.

At 30 storeys, the tower would be four storeys taller than the nearby Bridge Street Exchange student flats building.

Council planning officers asked the developers GallifordTry for £4.8 million in planning obligations “to mitigate any significant adverse impacts” of the tower and to provide “essential, enabling and necessary infrastructure”. This included £232,599 for community facilities, £435,356 for public open space, and £4,181,800 for affordable housing.

The developers said they would not make enough profit if they had to pay the full Section 106 costs, so agreed with the council to pay £500,000 instead, to “enhance the public realm”, about 10 per cent of what was first asked.