A new seven-storey office building is planned for the corner of Par-la-Ville and Church Street in Hamilton.

The lot currently houses the LA White building and the former New Queen Chinese restaurant but those buildings are slated to come down for construction of the 48,000 square foot office block.

The Development Applications Board (DAB) gave final approval for the new building - to be named after Maxwell Roberts - on February 6.

Mr. Roberts was a former partner of the proposed building's owner, Jeff Conyers, who died a number of years ago.

Yesterday, Mr. Conyers said he preferred not to discuss plans for the office building at this stage.

The building will have balconies on the upper three stories and a covered pedestrian arcade on the Par-la-Ville corner.

The corner will be setback, landscaped and equipped with built in benches.

According to the plans submitted by architects Cooper and Gardner to the Planning department, the sidewalk will also be emblazoned with coloured slate or granite to complement the coloured windows of the white building.

"The massing of the Maxwell Roberts building is designed to emphasise and open up the corner of the site," wrote Pedro Fornazaric of Cooper and Gardner.

"This is possible because it amalgamates the two properties formerly known as the `LA White Building' and (more recently and colloquially) the `Chinese Building'.

"The combination of the white solids and the coloured glass and metals should result in a building that is restful but interesting and uniquely Bermudian."

The new building also borders Hurst Holme - a listed building located on Trott Road.

In order that the offices not detract from the Georgian building prized for its historical and architectural merit, Planning asked that the elevation on that side be limited.

The architects have planned for the only two to three stories on the Hurst Holme side and also on the side bordered by Dorchester House.

There were no objectors to the new building when it was gazetted and Planning officers noted it signals "a fresh architectural approach" in the city.

The LA White building was constructed in the 1950s while the newer New Queen restaurant went up in the early 1970s.