Flats could be built above ex-department store

The upper floors of a former department store in Bradford city centre can be converted into flats, planners have agreed.

The former Brown & Muff department store was built on the corner of Ivegate and Market Street in 1870, and most recently traded as Rackhams.

The store shut in 1995, with the ground floor of the building divided into smaller units. Today, it houses a Caffe Nero among other businesses.

The latest proposed redevelopment for the second and third floors includes 34 one-bed flats, a gym, office space and a private dining room.

Planning permission to convert the top floor into accomodation has been granted on two previous occasions, in 2017 and 2022.

The latest plans, submitted by Mab Hussain of BFD 1 Development Limited, came in the form of a "permitted development" application, rather than a traditional planning application.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, under current rules, developers are able to convert empty spaces in city centre buildings into flats without the need for planning permission.

Councils can only block such developments if they have serious highways or environmental health concerns about the proposals.

Planners have now said the scheme can progress through permitted development.

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