From this ...to this. See how iconic building in Milton Keynes is to become a 33-storey tower block

The Jaipur restaurant at Grafton Gate in Central Milton Keynes is designed to look like an eastern temple and won fame as the world’s largest purpose built restaurant when it opened in 2002.

It closed in 2018 and re-opened as a cocktail and clubbing bar before closing completely in 2021.

Developers Galliford Try applied for planning permission to demolish the ornate building and redevelop it as a tower block of more than 300 flats. But Milton Keynes City Council refused after residents slammed the plan as hideous” and out of character for the area.

Councillors also decided there said was not enough parking for the new homes the block would create in the city centre.

However, Galliford appealed the decision and this week they won.

The Planning Inspector conducting the appeal said other high-rise buildings had been approved in CMK and he could see no reason why this one should not.

Galliford won the parking argument by stating there was public transport provision nearby plus storage for bikes

The council was concerned that it would be a residential development in an office-led area. But the Planning Inspector said the business area was built in a modernist style and the tower block would be “stylistically in tune” with earlier buildings.

The Jaipur and Orchard Lounge will now be demolished for the 33-storey block to be built. It will feature a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments, alongside ground-floor commercial spaces, an orangery and a rooftop terrace.

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