AN ANTIQUES shop in the centre of York is to be turned into flats aimed at providing house-hunters and visiting workers with a place to stay.

Councillors have approved a scheme to redevelop The French House Antiques store in Micklegate into 12 serviced apartments after the owner of the business decided to move to a new base outside the city centre.

The scheme will allow people to rent the flats on a short or medium-term basis, with cleaning services, the cost of heating and the supply of fresh linen all being included within the fee they pay.

City of York Council’s west and city centre area planning sub-committee gave the project its unanimous approval when it met this week, with members describing the move as “imaginative” and a step towards reviving a “tired” area around Barker Lane.

In a report to the meeting, planning officers said the site had been split between office use and as a base for storerooms and workshops for French House Antiques, whose owner now planned to relocate to Huntington.

They said the loss of the building’s current mix of uses was “regrettable”, but added: “The buildings are currently underused and conversion would bring them back into active use, to the benefit of the area.”

Committee member Coun Anne Reid said: “It is an interesting application because you are limited in what you can do with these buildings and they will never be used again for manufacturing or industry, so this is an imaginative use of the premises.”

Coun Sonja Crisp said: “It is a tired-looking area and it has got to the point where if somebody does not do something with this building, it will be too costly to restore it, so I believe this is a good idea.”

The plans for the site include retaining space for a retail unit in Micklegate, while a reception area for the apartments would be created at the rear of the building.