Wondering What's Happening on the Corner of Stone Road and Co-operative Street?

Construction Underway at Stone Road Corner Plot After Planning Battle

Construction is now underway at the prominent corner plot of Stone Road and Co-operative Street, bringing an end to years of speculation about the site's future. The development is for a 26-apartment retirement living complex, based on plans that were originally approved in 2019.

Photo of the site in Jun 2018 Credit: Google Maps

View of the house before it was demolished

The project now being built is smaller than what the developer, Harixon Ltd, had more recently hoped for. In 2020, the company submitted a new application to increase the size of the scheme to 30 apartments, stating in their application that the 26-apartment plan was "not economically viable."

However, that larger, four-storey proposal was refused by Stafford Borough Council in May 2020. The council argued that its "scale, design and form... would be have a detrimental visual impact upon the character and appearance of the area."

The developer appealed this decision, taking the case to the national Planning Inspectorate. In March 2021, the appeal was dismissed. The government inspector agreed with the council's main concern, concluding that a four-storey building on the prominent corner plot "would form a visually dominant addition to the street scene causing harm to the character and appearance of the area."

With the larger scheme rejected, development has now started based on the original, approved plans for 26 apartments. The project will see the site, formerly home to a large Victorian house, brought back into use after being cleared several years ago.

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