Concerns have been raised by members of a new community in Sighthill over plans for a “large townhouse” to be let to multiple people.
Residents fear HMO [houses in multiple occupation] use could distort the character of the area, which was the subject of a regeneration project.
They believe a “significant proportion” of the homes should be for long-term, stable use, with a focus on growing the community.
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Despite their concerns, Glasgow’s licensing committee agreed to grant a three-year HMO licence to Yuanyuan Lin for 10 Sighthill Circus. The decision means the three-storey property can be let to five people.
Seven representations relating to the application were submitted to the council, including from councillors Allan Gow and Jacqueline McLaren.
One objector, Laura Gricar, told a licensing meeting how residents in the new development are “growing as a community” since the first keys were handed out in 2021.
She said the project had been designed to connect the area to Glasgow city centre and there had been a focus on family homes.
Mrs Gricar added: “The granting of this HMO licence for one of the large townhouse properties, especially at such an early stage of the development, will be detrimental to the advertised and intended purpose of this community.
“There is a risk that as the development continues, it potentially distorts the market and character of the area.”
She suggested the owner’s decision to seek a licence for five tenants, when the property has four bedrooms, showed they are “not interested in contributing to this new community but rather gaining the highest return on investment as possible”.
A representative for the applicant said claims that the properties could be restricted to one family were “very bizarre”.
“That means not only you restrict HMO provision but also restrict any type of rental, when you can’t have two unrelated people moving in,” he said.
He added when his client had purchased the property there was a form which gave “not only ‘buy to let’ but also ‘joint purchase’” as an option. “As far as we know ‘joint purchase’ can be up to four people.”
The representative said that while the licence was for up to five persons, his client might only rent it to four. Cllr Alex Wilson, who chairs the licensing committee, said that could allow three single people and a couple to rent the home.
He added: “Is there anything here that says your client is a bad person? No, there isn’t. There’s objections based on the type of property, the area etc, but that’s not how we make decisions on HMOs.
“There are no adverse comments from the HMO unit, we’ve got no history of complaints.”
A council inspection in February last year found the property was “satisfactory” and all certification had been provided.
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