By Jamie Waller, Local Democracy Reporter
A former Nottingham restaurant which has been closed for years will be turned into student accommodation after a two-storey extension.
The former Antibo restaurant on Lower Parliament Street has fallen into disrepair since its closure, and cannabis plants have been discovered within it.
Newly-approved plans from Man Mountain Estates Ltd will convert it into 49 student flats and office and commercial space on the ground floor.
Two extra floors will be added on top to create extra space, documents say.
The city centre building was originally built in the 1940s as a department store.
During the mid-1980s, it became Italian restaurant Antibo, with the name still prominent on the building’s front, and later Chez Coor’s, a Jamaican buffet.
Since then, it has become a target of anti-social behaviour and illegal cannabis farming and is currently in “an unkempt state”.
The application says: “This location is perfectly positioned for student housing due to its close proximity to the Nottingham Trent University campus and will also help to revitalise the local area by drawing interest further down Lower Parliament Street, and into the Creative Quarter.
“Consideration has been given to the demolition of the existing building and the subsequent development of a new build block.
“Design work has moved away from this strategy as we are conscious that the existing building forms an iconic part of the street scene on Lower Parliament Street.”
The developer had originally raised the possibility of adding three extra floors.
However, residents had raised concerns this would be “too invasive” during consultation, and the plans were scaled back to two floors.
The top of the building would feature a green roof and the accommodation would come with cycle storage for residents.
Nottingham City Council has granted full planning permission.
It comes shortly after a development for a 169-bedroom student accommodation building was also approved on the University of Nottingham’s Jubilee campus.
