Furniture shop to open in former Penshaw Co-op store after chain moved to new site

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has approved an application for 1-2 Percy Terrace in the Penshaw area.

The property was once occupied by a Co-op convenience store before the retail chain moved to a larger purpose-built building at a former garage site nearby.

New plans for the Percy Terrace site aimed to change its use to make way for an office furniture company with storage and office space.

The plans also included the installation of a roller shutter door to the rear of the property for deliveries and replacement windows to the ground floor and first floor.

Although the change of use did not require planning permission as a “permitted development”, external changes to the building required approval.

Applicant Levant Office Interiors Ltd aimed to upgrade ground floor windows with clear glass looking into an office/showroom area.

Meanwhile, upper floor windows were proposed to be replaced with white uPVC double-glazed windows in the same style as the neighbouring property.

It was noted that the window changes were needed to replace ageing timber frames and to “improve energy efficiency and security”.

After considering the planning application and assessing it against planning policies, Sunderland City Council’s planning department approved it on October 25, 2023.

Council planners, in a decision report, said the scheme was acceptable and “unlikely to result in any serious detriment to highway safety, the residential amenities of neighbouring properties or the visual amenities of the host property and the street scene in general”.

It was also noted that new windows would “improve the visual appearance of the property and reintroduce an active shopfront”.

The council decision report added: “The new roller shutter to the rear will reflect similar vehicular accesses within the rear lane.

“The drawings indicate that the roller shutter box will be set into the wall so as not to overhang the highway.

“The transportation development team has confirmed that there are no objections to the proposal from a highway safety point of view”.

Those behind the scheme previously said the development would be “unobtrusive” while “improving the look” of the building and the street.

A planning application submitted to council officials added the development would create three full-time and two part-time jobs.

For more information on the planning application or council decision, visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 23/01787/FUL