8 Bridge Street, City Centre

8 Bridge Street is a Grade II mid-18th century terraced house, now with a commercial ground floor, situated within the core of the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of the terraced setting of the Grade II mid-18th century 1 and 2-7 Bridge Street and is situated adjacent to the Grade II* 1897-1900 Victoria Art Gallery. It forms part of the retail streetscape approach in short to mid-range views from and across the Grade I mid-18th century Pulteney Bridge. It retains its early 20th century symmetrical timber shop front with recessed fascia and decorative pilasters.

The commercial shopfront character and appearance of the core of the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site is enhanced by its retained vernacular appearance, use of traditional materials and construction methods, and bespoke design approach. Consequently, shop frontages are expected to conform to relevant guidance regarding the appropriate use of materials, colours, and a lack of illuminated signage, in keeping with the wider historic character of the city conservation area and World Heritage Site.

The use of a strident yellow colour for the blind box is inappropriate in this context. This colour would clash with the more recessive, honey tones of the Bath stone ashlar frontage of a listed building. We therefore suggest that this could instead be painted brown to match the proposed treatment of the shop front; alternatively, a buff or off-white colour could be utilised if a contrasting colour is deemed necessary to ensure a more neutral and complementary appearance. We emphasise that a matte finish would be more appropriate in the historic context.

Considering the shop’s location adjacent to Pulteney Bridge, a more traditional shop front treatment would be more appropriate. In this setting, hand-painted lettering would be preferred. Should individually-mounted letters be deemed acceptable, we continue to recommend the use of an off-white or buff colour rather than a stark white and in a matte finish rather than the proposed gloss.

We additionally have some concerns regarding the proposed window treatment. Whilst there are no vinyls proposed in the proposed elevation, the shop-front mock up displays the windows as being greyed out. It is unclear as to whether this proposal would include opaque vinyls, or whether this is a drawing ‘quirk’. Whilst window vinyls and displays can enliven and energise the street scene, we maintain these should not be excessive in size or window coverage at risk of ‘deadening’ or overwhelming the façade.

We therefore suggest that further details of this aspect of the design is submitted to allow for proper assessment and clarified with the case officer.