The Reading developments that change Friar Street forever

Although Broad Street has much more foot traffic, Friar Street provides a vital walking link to the train station and is a key part of many Reading Buses routes.

It is also a  eating, drinking, clubbing and shopping destination.

Friar Street is in for some massive changes in coming years, with hundreds of apartments, hotel rooms and leisure space either being built or planned for.

You can take a look at four of the transformational developments that will change the face of Friar Street below.

You can view plans where applicable by typing the reference in brackets into the council’s planning portal.

Station Hill 

The development phases for the huge Station Hill plans. Credit: Lincoln MGT

Perhaps the biggest ongoing development in Reading, Station Hill is fronted onto Friar Street with a number of multi storey towers being built.

Construction is being undertaken by contractors Midgard.

Once complete, 1,500 homes will have been built, two acres of public space created, and 95,000 square ft of retail and leisure space.

A CGI of what the Station Hill development in Reading would look like from Friar Street. Credit Lincoln MGT

Additionally, 625,000 square ft of office space is being made as well.

The buildings that face Friar Street are part of phase 1 of the development, and is made up of three huge build to rent apartment blocks.

Phase 1 involves the construction of 538 apartments and retail and leisure floorspace, which was approved at a Reading Borough Council planning committee meeting on July 19, 2019.

Cosmo building

Rooftop gardens are contained within developer proposals to replace Cosmo in Friar Street, Reading. Credit: Shaviram Group

Last month, a plan was submitted to replace 35-39 Friar Street with a new 11 storey tower.

Number 35-38 is currently occupied by the Cosmo global buffet, while 39 used to be the home of the 9 Rounds boxing gym.

The plan was submitted by The Shaviram Group, which wants to provide 103 apartments with a mix of one, two and three bedrooms.

It is likely Cosmo would have to close or relocate while construction takes place, if the plan reference 220933 is approved.

Queen Victoria Street corner 

A CGI of Thackeray Estate's full vision for the corner of Queen Victoria Street and Friar Street, containing conversions to create apart-hotel rooms and a new Jurys Inn Hotel. Credit: Falconer Chester Hall

The corner of Friar Street and Queen Victoria Street is a key town centre junction.

Thackeray Estates owns it, and has huge plans which are split into two parts, codenamed QVS1 and QVS2.

QVS1 involves modifications and extensions to create 104 apartment-hotel rooms for visitors to Reading.

READ MORE: Development that could change corner of Reading town centre forever explained

QVS2, which is entirely on Friar Street, involves building a 163 bed Jurys Inn hotel, and also transform The Bugle pub into a dining area for the hotel.

Plans were submitted this summer and could be decided in December. Here are their references:

• QVS1 – 221232 and 221233
• QVS2 – 221235

The Bristol and West Arcade 

The Bristol & West Arcade in Friar Street, Reading town centre. Credit: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting Service

Located at the end of Friar Street, there have been multiple plans for the arcade in recent years.

The most recent plans involve the building modified to provide a total of 36 apartments.

Developers Mountley Ltd  won permission to convert existing floors from offices into 26 flats earlier this year.

A design for the two floor roof extension at the Bristol and West Arcade in Friar Street, Reading town centre. Credit: JDW Architects

You can view the approved plans using references 220579 and 220577.

In September, Mountley applied to add two floors to the arcade, with six of them being on new fourth floor, and four being on the fifth floor.

You can see the plan using reference 221381.