Final viewing for £19m Hiscox office plan

Last year, Hiscox announced it had selected the city for a purpose-built office, its largest outside London, in a bid to capitalise on high-quality staff and get closer to customers.

The move to Hungate will see 125 staff employed initially, rising to a total of 300.

The plans are set to include the development of another new building nearby, featuring retail or leisure uses on the ground floor and a hotel or offices on the upper floors and the possible creation of a further 100 jobs.

In July, the company revealed its drawings for a site in Peasholme Green, behind the Black Swan pub.

Now Hiscox is inviting the public to view the proposals for a final time before they are submitted to City of York Council’s planning authority.

A spokesman for Hiscox said: “We would like to thank those who visited our initial public consultation at The Guildhall in July. With more than 120 people attending, we really appreciate the time that many took to come to the event, meet the team and comment on the development.

“The feedback at that event was extremely positive and has helped to shape our plans for Peasholme Green.

“We would now like to show local people the final plans before a full planning application for the new building is submitted. We will also respond to requests raised at the initial exhibition for further information.

‘‘For example, a number of attendees at our previous event told us they wanted to know more about the building’s position in relation to the Black Swan pub, so this time around we will have new images to share which show that clearly.”

The final plans, which include a rooftop terrace and atrium, will be displayed at the Guildhall, in St Helen’s Square, from noon to 8pm next Wednesday. The company aims to submit a detailed planning application to the authority this autumn and the offices would open in the spring of 2015 if permission is granted.