There has been a lot of controversy around the exterior of Spark: York, with some residents viewing it as an “eyesore” due to the use of street art and graffiti.
The council and the directors of Spark about the image that Spark is portraying.
Business owners within Spark say the warehouse is “different” which is what makes it good and that changing the image would ruin its aesthetic.
Kate Burton, owner of Cardamom and Dill, a Mediterranean vegetarian cafe that has just found its home in Spark, said Spark has helped her business grow.
“The space is very contemporary and different which i believe makes it stand out to the public,” she said.
She also says that Spark is fitting for her business as it looks “lovely and welcoming” but also unique and alternative which attracts young people.
“off putting”
In a City of York council meeting last week, the matter of Spark being an “eyesore” was discussed as Councillors said that residents have been unhappy with the steel container image of Spark, saying it was off putting and lacking support from the general public.
However, Spark has been a great success over the last six months and has accumulated £1.5 million over the time it has been open to the public.
The council have stated that they agreed with the directors of Spark that cladding should of been put up rather than the street art image that Spark has today.
However, the directors stand by their statement that the warehouse was made to be unique and changing its style would change what Spark represents.
People have taken to Twitter to express their opinions on Spark saying they don’t “comply with planning rules”
Good to hear that #SparkYork have both a new roof and healthy income figures to report …..perhaps this will enable them to comply with planning rules in the same way as the rest of us have to ?! pic.twitter.com/Q29uMInVtj
— Guest Walker (@GuestWalker) November 16, 2018
Although many tweets have expressed their fury with Spark for disregarding planning permission rules, Spark have provided over 60 jobs for people and have had 250,000 visitors so far.
Great work Libby