Plans to restore Yorkshire city centre buildings to Victorian glory are approved

An application to refurbish a section of Darley Street, Duke Street and Piccadilly, in Bradford, including some shops that have been empty for years, has been approved by Bradford Council.

The buildings’ owner – Panther Properties, said the work would help make the prominent units more attractive to potential tenants after the new Darley Street Market opens next year.

Apart from the units on Duke Street and the corner of Darley Street – bars and a music venue, the buildings are vacant, and the company says one unit has been so for almost 50 years.

The plans would see sections of the building, such as a decrepit roof, repaired, while modern additions would be removed and Victorian shop fronts restored.

Planning officers welcomed the work, saying the buildings were “in clear need of attention.”

The Darley Street Market is being built on the former Marks & Spencer site on Darley Street. Once open, the building will become the sole market in the town centre.

Bradford Council hopes the development will breath new life into Darley Street, which has been plagued by empty units since many businesses relocated to the Broadway Shopping Centre in 2015.

Some of the units are Grade II listed.

Planning officers said: “The majority of the works are to be done in a way which reflects the age and character of the buildings and improve their appearance which is currently unsightly and there is a clear need for intervention.

“The buildings have undergone many alterations over the years with some of the unsympathetic additions proposing to be removed, such as rooflights, but these will not harm the historic significance of the buildings.

“These works will involve removing the unsightly external painted wood on the substantial Piccadilly elevation with render being proposed instead with the removal of the redundant pipework and various proposed repairs helping to restore the elevation.

“The replacement of the shopfronts to no.26, 28 and 30 Darley Street is an improvement which will noticeably enhance the property. The proposed detailing will reflect the historic detail of the properties which has been lost over the years.

“The shop front designs are of a proportion and style which is similar to Victorian era shop fronts. The proposal will replace the crude plastic and metallic additions and help to enhance the heritage significance of the buildings.”