Plans revealed to demolish Derby's Riverside car park and build apartment block

Development plans for the former Eagle Market site in Derby look set to change drastically after it was decided that Derby Theatre would remain where it is currently and not move into the Market Place. Instead the theatre will stay in situ and be extended using a £10 million Government grant.

This means that a plan to build 11 apartment blocks, including a 29-storey building, for 875 residences, on the site has gone back to the drawing board and in its place is likely to be a residential/mixed-use scheme of up to 600 apartments with a maximum building height of 16 storeys.

Additionally, it also looks likely that the adjacent Riverside car park - which closed in April 2023 and has been sitting empty ever since - will be demolished and its place are likely to be more apartment blocks of between 16 and 18 storeys. The car park land is owned by Derby City Council and the Riverside car park is on a long lease with Derbion.

Despite outline planning permission being given for the original scheme by city councillors - following objections from Historic England and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) in relation to adverse impacts on the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site - this subsequently triggered the applications to be referred to the Secretary of State, who issued a holding direction in August 2023 which said the council could not grant permission for the site without specific authorisation.

Last August, the World Heritage Centre Advisory Body’s State of Conservation Report was published, which raised concerns about the development pressure on the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site and with the inability of the management system to safeguard the Outstanding Universal Value, advising that if not urgently addressed, this may pose a threat to the World Heritage Site.

Following discussions, it has been agreed to reduce the building heights for each of the schemes including a further Derbion proposal for Bradshaw Way, where it had been proposed that a 19-storey building could be built. This will be reduced to 15 storeys.

Two new separate planning applications will be submitted for each site and pre-application discussions are understood to now be under way, including the redevelopment of the Riverside car park.

Adrian Farmer, heritage coordinator of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, has said "the reductions in height of buildings is an excellent start".

Derbyshire Live has been asking both the city council and Derbion about their plans for the Riverside car park site and as recently as August was told by Derbion: "We continue to work with Derby City Council to explore all potential options for this strategically important site within Derby city centre." And Derby City Council said the same as they said in April 2023: "Derby City Council owns the land underneath the car park which is leased to Derbion. We will work with Derbion on any future discussions for the site."

The land the car park was built on was originally the site of Derby's ice factory and, after its demolition, permission was given for the car park to be built and a 99-year lease on the land was given by the council to the owners, which at the time was MEPC, which built the original Eagle Centre, later becoming the Westfield shopping centre in 2007, now Derbion.

The lease passed to the owners of Derbion and still has around 64 years to run. This means that the owners cannot do anything with the land without talking to the city council and possibly renegotiating the lease. Derbion is responsible for keeping the car park secure and maintained until an alternative use is found.

Last August's critical report by the World Heritage Centre Advisory Body highlighted the many and various projects which it felt contravened World Heritage Status, including the then Eagle Market and Bradshaw Way developments.

Currently, Derbion is building an new £15 million entrance to the shopping centre called the Eastern Gateway and which comprises of a "kinetic" (moving) and shimmering wall and a garden and seating area set around a square at the bottom end of East Street, opposite the bus station.

Derbyshire Live has asked Derbion to confirm that the plans are changing after locating information on the city council's planning portal. When Derbyshire Live approached the city council about the changes and pans for the Riverside car park, it referred us to Derbion for comment.