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3. Key recommendations for the Birmingham Road site
from Birmingham Road Masterplan
by LDCgov
The following recommendations are based on responses and data gathered from all engagement activities. Many of these themes were heard repeatedly in the online and in-person engagements and key stakeholder interviews.
1. Buildings: heritage, heritage, heritage – people continue to want a development that ‘fits in’ with Lichfield .
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• The top eight buildings deemed most appropriate for the Birmingham Road site were heritage buildings. Recommendation for materials were red brick, with 51 per cent preference for red brick Flemish bond. Stretcher bond engineering brick was the least popular material with just 5 per cent of preferences.
• Larger sash windows, referred to as ‘Georgian’ windows, were a preferred characteristic of four of the top eight buildings. Georgian door surrounds, cornicing and string courses characterise these buildings and should be used. Simple, good proportions are another key characteristic of these buildings, all featuring a clear division of bays to produce symmetrical facades (see section ‘Towards a Birmingham Road site design code’).
• The emerging Frog Lane renders are provably popular and these designs should be rolled out across the wider site. Image 1 (neo-Georgian) had 84 per cent support, with image 2 (neo-Italianate) at 71 per cent.
• Caution should be taken with any ‘contemporary’ design. Some residents were open to contemporary architectural styles, but visual preference surveys showed recent Lichfield development was unpopular. These buildings often have asymmetric facades, use non-traditional materials such as cladding, UPVC, and stretcher bond engineering bricks, which should be avoided.
2. Create smaller residences for younger residents to live and work in Lichfield .
• Affordability for younger ages was a key concern raised in discussions. 15 from 141 written submissions raised housing affordability, alongside numerous in-person discussions. Use a range of narrower, terraced buildings, which could be split level or mansion block typologies.
