PLANS to turn a former church in Newport city centre into 20 flats have been submitted.

If approved, St Paul’s Church will be brought back into use, having been closed and placed behind fencing for quite some time.

The Commercial Street building was vacated by the Church in Wales in 2016, before being sold to a new owner in 2018.

However, since then, it has been seen to have fallen into disrepair, with local residents raising concerns regarding the condition of its memorial gardens.

But now, subject to planning permission, the Grade II listed, 1830s building could be transformed into living accommodation within the city centre.

According to planning documents, submitted to Newport City Council by LPC Trull Ltd on behalf of the applicant, the building would be transformed into 16 single-bedroom, and four two-bedroom flats, the latter being found on the ground floor.

First floor flats are all set to have internal staircases within the flats, leading to a gallery in the roofspace.

The plans show that the external look of the building will remain largely unchanged, in accordance to its listed status.

But, one major change would see the removal of the stained glass windows, to be replaced with clear glass – which the applicant describes as “a necessary adaptation to facilitate modern living arrangements.”

Externally, it is not immediately clear what will happen to the memorial gardens, and the existing green space.

However, plans show that there will be just 10 car parking spaces available for residents.

But, the applicant wrote that “this is considered to be a sustainable location where car ownership is not essential and will encourage walking and cycling as alternatives.”

Continuing, they suggested that should the building be used commercially or as a place of worship once more, it would generate “a significant amount of car trips” in of itself.

Plans show that none of the flats would be designated for affordable housing, with the applicant claiming that the proposal would not be viable with these measures in place.

It is believed that a section 106 contribution - a payment made by a developer to a council to be used to benefit the local area - may instead be provided in place of affordable housing provisions.

The proposal has been submitted to Newport City Council’s planning department for their consideration.

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