17 Southgate Place receives planning 30.08.23

17 Southgate Place has received planning from Bath and North-East Somerset Council.

Originally designed for British department store Debenhams, 17 Southgate Place was the anchor retail offer for the SouthGate Bath masterplan. Completed in 2009, the building was part of the still thriving mixed use development, owned by Aviva and British Land, within the Bath Conservation Area and World Heritage Site.

Following Debenham’s transition to an online only offer and within the context of the changing nature of the retail, new thinking was required to restore this bespoke building. On behalf of our joint-venture clients, British Land and Aviva, AHMM explored a range of different design solutions for the structure, before developing a mixed-use scheme with retail, offices, and lab enabled space.

To minimise the embodied carbon of the refurbished building, the design intelligently re-uses and reinvents the existing building fabric. The proposals maximise the high ceilings, generous floorplates, and robust concrete structure, and reuse the staircases and lift shafts. Natural ventilation and access to daylight will be improved by creating new openings in the stone facades, and the empty roof space will be converted to provide additional accommodation with access to outdoor terraces and roof gardens.