CARADON planners have approved details for the construction of the new Tamar Valley Centre on the site of the former Drakewells Mine at Gunnislake. The building, which was given outline permission last year, will serve as a gateway centre to East Cornwall, incorporating tourist information, office space and the Calstock Archive. Members of Caradon District Council?s planning control committee agreed the design and external appearance of the building, which will be situated on a raised area of mine waste, subject to satisfactory details regarding on-site contamination. The centre will be two-storey with a shallow pitched sedum roof and elevations will be a mixture of natural stone, cedar cladding and render. An obelisk feature is proposed at the eastern end, resembling the profile of an engine house. Planning officers consider the design to be high quality with its blend of traditional and contemporary forms and materials.
