Norwich City Council’s new Rose Lane multi-storey car park has been completed. The new car park and an adjacent office building are designed to kick-start the regeneration of the Mountergate area of the city centre. The car park is also intended to remove traffic from the city centre.
The Rose Lane car park was built on the site of a former fish market and fire station, adjacent to an existing surface car park. The new car park provides 595 parking bays, including 36 spaces for disabled drivers, and electric vehicle charging points. There are also 36 cycle parking bays and cycle lockers.
Norwich wanted the car park to act as a landmark building on the approach into the city centre, so much attention was paid to how it would look. The façade comprises a perforated steel cladding that has been powder-coated yellow and which features laser-cut designs that are revealed when the car park is illuminated at night.
Adrian Blakely, programme director for Norwich Parking Services (NPS), said: “We put a lot of effort into how the car park will relate to the surrounding area in the future, and delivered something that makes this part of the city attractive for regeneration.
The car park is a composite structure, featuring a steel frame bearing concrete decks. The structure features a vertical circulation module (VCM) approach, which was felt to make best use of space. All the parking bays have been demarcated using colour blocks.
The interior is lit using an LED lighting system. The car park is monitored by CCTV throughout and roller shutters control access.
There are two lifts, public toilets, a baby changing room and an attendant’s office.
The car park’s 530 m² roof 80 kWp solar panels are designed to make the car park self-sufficient for power.
Fire safety requirements have involved creating firewalls facing the adjacent building.
Unused space in the building will be marketed to local companies as either office accommodation or a café.
The car park was built by German company HUBER Car Park Systems, which won this European design & build tender.
Planning permission for the £7m car park was granted in January 2015 and it took just over a year to complete the project. When the multi-storey opened for business in May, the surface car park was closed and is now available for redevelopment.
Cllr Bert Bremmer, cabinet member for environment and sustainable development, says: “This project is not just about a new multi-storey to serve the city centre – it’s about kick-starting regeneration. Provision of parking will hopefully act as a catalyst for private sector investment and bring new businesses to the area.”