The first phase of a huge project to build 1,430 new homes in South Bristol is underway - with work starting on the first 53 this week.
The massive Hengrove Park development site, on the former Whitchurch Airfield between Hartcliffe and Hengrove, has been handed by Bristol City Council to the council-owned housebuilding company Goram Homes. They said that eventually at least half of the 1,430 new homes built there will be classed as ‘affordable’.
The first 53 in phase one will all be designated as ‘affordable’ in planning terms, with 27 available for social rent, and the other 26 available for shared ownership. And Goram Homes has now named The Hill Group as the housebuilder that will be building the homes.
Read more: South Bristol's GPs and schools won't cope with 12,000 new homes claims MP
Goram Homes said there are more than 4,000 households in South Bristol on the city’s housing register, who all need their first or bigger council homes. The first stage of the Hengrove Park development will deliver one- and two-bed properties, which will help people to get off the housing waiting list and into homes.
The Hengrove Park site has long been a controversial housing development area, with plans debated about for years to build homes there. After the plans for almost 1,500 new homes there were finally given planning approval, the project stalled for a couple of years before city housing chiefs ended the process of trying to find a developer to take on the site and instead gave the job to Goram Homes, the council’s new housing company.
Cllr Tom Renhard, the cabinet member for housing, said they would make sure that future developments at Hengrove Park would be done in partnership with the South Bristol Skills Academy, which is just next door, to provide training and employment opportunities for local residents.
“This marks the start of a flagship development for South Bristol, which will go on to deliver much-needed new homes for our city,” he said. “By working together, we can develop high-quality, sustainable homes on council land. This will help more of our citizens access social housing and give more options for affordable home ownership too.”
The masterplan for this project also includes new commercial and office spaces, a community centre, sports pavilion, scout hut, an energy centre and the expansion of local transport options.
However, there is little in the way of health provision at this, or any other of the many development sites across South Bristol, which are seeing more than 12,000 new homes built or planned - something flagged by South Bristol MP Karin Smyth as a huge concern.
Stephen Baker, the managing director at Goram Homes, said the Hengrove Park development would be ‘highly sustainable’.
“Hengrove Park will be a highly sustainable residential development, with affordable homes in the numbers our city really needs,” he said. “We’ll also improve local infrastructure, introduce new sustainable transport options and build community facilities to benefit local people. We look forward to engaging with the community as these plans progress.”
The Hill Group, named as the developer who will actually build the homes, recently also took over the work to finish off the Boat Yard development on the Bath Road in Totterdown, after the original developer went bust earlier this year.
Andy Fancy, The Hill Group’s managing director, said: “We are proud to have been selected to work in partnership with Goram Homes to build these homes in Bristol. [This] marks the first milestone on site as we break ground to create this exciting new residential quarter.
“We look forward to exploring future ways we can apply our strong expertise in delivering extensive regeneration projects to support the local community and to continue our excellent partnership with Goram Homes and Bristol City Council, helping them achieve their ambitious housebuilding targets for the area,” he added.
Read next:
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