To maintain and enhance the quality of the built environment within the City Centre, new development should respect urban scale and townscape. The retention and enhancement of the street layout, containment, building lines and elevational proportions (its essential urban character) will provide a strong framework within which the regeneration process can take place.

1. To secure the quality of the physical environment within and throughout the City Centre, new development should respect the urban scale and form of the existing townscape, particularly in the areas of traditional sandstone buildings and principally, within the Central Conservation Area.

2. Development should have regard to the design policies DES 1 - DES 9 and also to the following criteria:

(a) retention of the grid-iron street pattern within the Victorian business area and respect for other distinctive street patterns within the City Centre;

(b) continuity of traditional building lines;

(c) continuity of street containment;

(d) respect for topography, traditional elevational proportioning and variety of plot widths;

(e) sensitive development of infill sites;

(f) utilisation of high quality materials in terms of type, texture, colour and durability; and

(g) in the selection of materials, respect for adjoining buildings and those in the immediate vicinity.

3. Proposals should be accompanied by sufficient information to permit a satisfactory design assessment. Planning applications for major developments, or developments in sensitive locations, should be supported by a detailed design statement including a context study, a site analysis and design concept (see policy DES 4: Design Statement).

4. To reflect the varied spatial and townscape pattern of development within the City Centre, new development should also have regard to the terms of policy CC/DES 2: Identity Areas.