UPDATE: 30.05.25

After other organisations and individuals made contact with the City Council Conservation Officer and Planning Enforcement there was full support and action from the City Council which achieved the desired effect of having the offending cowl removed today on Friday 30th May. Congratulations and thanks to all those who raised concerns and also to the Council for their swift response.

ARTICLE FIRST PUBLISHED: 18.05.25

A resident who overlooks the Grade II Listed Piazza Fountain in Beetham Plaza arrived home on Tuesday evening (13.05.25) to find this addition had appeared on the monument. It is a cowl placed there by contractors working in the underground car park below the fountain structure.

Speaking to other residents Engage discovered that none were aware of any notification being posted or letter sent to residents in the adjoining apartment blocks advising of the planning application to add to the listed structure. The first they knew about it was when it appeared. The image below supplied by a resident shows the cowl sitting on top of the stairwell.

Having received complaints about the lack of consultation the Engage Board met on Wednesday and unanimously agreed to contact the council in support of the residents case requesting removal of the offending item and re-siting it within the structure itself.  It is possible that the Council followed legal requirements for granting permission for this to happen but it seems incredibly strange to those living around the fountain that no-one knew anything about the proposal – which in all honesty isn’t acceptable when you’re dealing with a Listed Monument.

It might be the case that the Council knows nothing about it themselves in which case we all expect an order to be issued to have it removed immediately. The Piazza Fountain Steering Group is sending a letter to the Council’s Principal Heritage Officer James Simmins, asking for clarification and resolution of the current situation.

We are grateful to the local resident who sent these images from their phone to Engage and we use them with permission.