An empty site just off the end of the M32 in St Pauls is to have 350 new homes - but only a fifth of them will be classed as ‘affordable’.
Places for People, a property management company that has worked closely with Bristol City Council for years, have unveiled plans for a huge new development on the site at Dove Lane - next to St Pauls Leisure Centre.
They say the proposed development will consist of a range of homes - from one to four-bedrooms - which will be arranged around a central square.
READ MORE: Bristol council chief admits he has 'very little power' to make developers build affordable homes
The announcement, released on February 2, said a public consultation ‘will be held at the end of January’ with local residents and ‘key stakeholders’, to get their views, before a planning application is submitted in the spring.
Places for People said that, as well as the new homes, the proposed development will provide spaces for community organisations or businesses.
The plans have already been backed by the city council’s housing chief Tom Renhard, who said he ‘welcomed these revised plans’. Places for People’s offer to make 70 of the homes ‘affordable’ is 20 per cent - half of the council’s stated policy that 40 per cent of new homes built in the city centre should be affordable. But the 20 per cent does meet the council’s new policy, revised in 2018, which said that, in certain circumstances, dropping the affordable housing element to 20 per cent could be acceptable.
Places for People have worked for years with Bristol City Council, and currently own or manage 2,800 affordable homes in the area, of which 2,015 are social rented, including 340 supported housing homes.
What do you think? Sign in and join the conversations in the comments below
The Dove Street site has had a long history of being stalled in the planning process - permission was granted for the site in 2014 and although initial works have begun, nothing has happened there for years.
Cllr Renhard said: “Bristol needs new homes to meet a housing crisis that shows little sign of easing.
“I welcome these revised plans that support our efforts to keep pace with Bristol’s housing need by delivering sustainable, well-built, and affordable homes. Collaboration with the local community is a vital aspect of successful development and I am pleased to see Places for People prioritise this aspect of their plans,” he added.
Places for People’s Managing Director for Placemaking and Regeneration, Sammie Steele, said: “We have an established relationship with Bristol City Council and these proposed plans form part of this. We are keen to bring forward our proposals for St Pauls, and it’s so important to us to understand what the community like, what they don’t like and what could be improved.
“We want to ensure our proposed plans are right for the community and St Pauls.
“We’re grateful to everyone who has been involved so far and look forward to working closely with Bristol City Council and the local community to progress the plans further,” he added.
Want our best stories with fewer ads and alerts when the biggest news stories drop? Download our app on iPhone or Android
