WARRINGTON Borough Council is to sell a site valued at £80,000 at less than half-price to enable a development of 11 affordable homes to go ahead.
The council will sell the former Social Services offices in Statham Avenue, Orford to the Arena Housing Association for £35,000.
A development of up to nine two-bed apartments and two three-bed houses, all for rent, will be built, subject to planning consent.
As a result of Warrington’s designation as part of the Mid-Mersey Housing Growth Point, the council will receive a grant of £730,000 towards the £1,287,464 cost of the project.
Arena will borrow £557,464 to make up the difference – and the council will receive 100 per cent initial nominations rents and enhanced nomination rights of 75 per cent of subsequent re-lets for 10 years.
The council has been trying to bring the site back into use for some time. Local residents have been consulted and have expressed concern about any proposal to replace the existing two-storey building with a three-storey development.
They fear a loss of privacy and daylight, overlooking and increased parking problems.
Warrington has more than 9,000 people on the housing waiting list, compared to only 1,835 in 2002.
It is estimated that there will be an annual shortfall of 172 affordable home up to 2013 and with the current slow-down in house building, there will be few new opportunities to meet the shortfall.
If the scheme did not go ahead, the borough would lose the £730,000 housing growth point grant.
3 Comments
This just shows that the Council is doing its best to close the gap between the have’s and have not’s. A gap that Labour has widened. Well done WBC Lib Dems for being brave on this.
“A development of up to nine two-bed apartments and two three-bed houses” ……… “a three-storey development.” If they are going to spend money on social housing wouldn’t it be wiser to build what is actually needed/wanted ie. 2 storey family homes with gardens?
I understand that residents have been trying themselves to bring this property back to use for some time and have been totallyu ignored by the Council. I understand that residents wanted the Cheshire Police to have a base there to make the area safer but this idea was never considered. Now there is a grant – and this is not free money – it seems the Council want to impose a solution on the area.