A housing association says it is in “a difficult position” after planning permission for homes it is already building were rejected by the city council.
Linc Cymru began constructing 12 modular homes to house those currently living in temporary accommodation at the Hill Street car park site near Newport city centre in September last year.
Despite Linc receiving government funding to build 12 new permanent homes at the car park in St Woolos, Newport council’s planning committee rejected the plans in December.
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Minutes from a council planning committee meeting dated December 1 show the plans were initially recommended for approval with conditions, but the plans were eventually rejected by five votes to four.
Linc insists it was allowed to begin construction without approval from the council as “permitted development rights” were granted by the Welsh Government. But Linc is still required to secure planning permission within 12 months of work starting.
The projected reduced-carbon homes had attracted criticism in the area from residents who argued St Woolos already struggled with anti-social behaviour, drug-related issues, and under-availability of parking - and that the homes would add to those issues.
Tenants were due to move in as soon as possible and prefabricated homes are to be delivered on February 7 after being completed in a factory by Zed Pods.
Linc said it is now preparing a revised planning application which seeks to address concerns from the conservation officer that the new homes would “fail to preserve or enhance the St Woolos conservation area”.
A revised plan will include introducing green walls, additional landscaping and redesigning the perimeter walls and railings, as well as the bin and bike stores to make them more traditional in appearance. The proposal already includes hedging and additional tree planting and is also set back from Hill Street to avoid obstructing any views.
Like the original plans, the revised proposal is for a two-storey building with 12 one-person apartments with decking and a balcony. 28 of the existing car park spaces at Hill Street will be retained.
Key to Welsh Government plans to build 20,000 new affordable and low-carbon homes by 2026, modular homes are quick to build once on site.
According to Newport city council there are 9,000 people on its housing waiting list, with 388 people living in costly temporary accommodation.
The council’s housing officer who supported Linc’s application said: “I support these proposals which will provide much needed long term accommodation for households that are currently in temporary homelessness accommodation. During the pandemic there has been a significant increase in people approaching the local authority for assistance with housing and homelessness.
“Once a household has been placed in temporary homelessness accommodation there are currently limited options for them to move on to long term permanent accommodation. There is not sufficient housing association stock in Newport to meet this need and private rented sector properties are increasingly unaffordable. This development is an important part of local authority plans to increase the supply of affordable social housing in Newport.”
Linc’s executive director of property and commercial, Louise Attwood, said: “The homeless crisis in Wales is acute in Newport. We were obviously disappointed that our application to provide secure, high quality permanent homes for 12 vulnerable people using innovative technology on an underused car park was refused.
“But we have listened to what councillors and our neighbours had to say about the original application and have made some important changes to our application to seek to address those concerns.
“I really want to reassure residents that the new homes are really well-designed, attractive and high-quality. This development will be extremely well-managed.”
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