Yorkshire Post site plans swap student towers for offices
Plans to revive the stalled redevelopment of the Leeds site have been revamped, with developer Prescient proposing offices in place of the student accommodation previously approved for the northern part of the scheme.
The revised proposals would replace plans for around 1,700 student rooms with two office buildings of 15 and 17 storeys, providing almost 530,000 sq ft of workspace.
The change follows further market testing and viability work by Prescient, which is seeking to unlock the next stage of development on the prominent city centre site.
The former newspaper headquarters was demolished in 2014 and the site has remained largely vacant since then.
Planning permission for its redevelopment was initially granted in 2015. The first phase subsequently delivered The Headline, a residential building comprising a stepped block of flats ranging from 13 to 18 storeys.
A further planning consent was secured in 2023 for around 1,700 student beds and 348 homes, with buildings of up to 42 storeys. However, the scheme did not progress.
Under the latest proposals, the northern section would see a substantial reduction in building heights, alongside the switch from student accommodation to office space.
The project team includes Quod, DLA Architecture, Re-Form Landscape Architecture, Waterman, Roscoe, Design Fire Consultants, Exigo Project Solutions, MZA Acoustics, FD Global, Keen Consultants and Red Ecology.
Prescient is now set to work with Leeds City Council on options for incorporating the surviving Yorkshire Post clock tower into the development.
The current planning application relates only to the northern section of the wider site and fresh proposals for the southern riverside plots are expected to be brought forward by a separate developer at a later date.
