Tuesday, March 17, 2020

News: Work starts on Rotherham town centre housing schemes

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Work has started in Rotherham Council's £30m proposals for new town centre housing where 170 new homes are set to be built across three key sites.

The schemes are seen as key to meeting the aim of the masterplan to increase the number of residential properties in the town centre.

Rothbiz reported in October on the proposals getting a green light for a range of new properties on sites across the town centre owned by the Council. These include the site of the former Sheffield Road baths, Millfold House on Sheffield Road (pictured) and the former Henley's garage on Wellgate.

Working with construction partner, Willmott Dixon, the developments feature a mix of tenures which include apartments for Council rent and a choice of ways to buy (outright sale or shared ownership).

Councillor Dominic Beck, Cabinet Member for Housing at Rotherham Council, said: "These are exciting, significant developments which will deliver 171 new properties for local people, including 129 Council rented and shared ownership homes, It will totally transform three disused former industrial sites and kick-start a raft of new housing development in the town centre.

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"The developments include a variety of property types to suit people of different ages including first-time buyers, key workers, families and older downsizers. There will also be a block of 23 Council-rented apartments on the former Henley’s Garage site which will be age-banded for applicants of over 50 years of age.

"A lot of hard work has gone into putting these plans together and I think we have come up with a fantastic scheme, which will contribute towards our ambitions for housing growth and town centre regeneration."

The residential project mirrors the plans to improve Forge Island which will include a cinema, food and drink outlets, a hotel, and a car park, with the new leisure facilities set within an attractive public space.

75% of the properties will be affordable homes with Council funding coming from the Housing Revenue Account. The Council has secured grant funding from Homes England Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme and from Sheffield City Region Housing Capital Fund.

Tom Bell, assistant director of housing at Rotherham Council, said: "The forthcoming transformation of Forge Island will help create many of the conditions for an attractive town centre residential offer.

"The market is still relatively underdeveloped and by bringing forward this scheme, within a similar timeframe to Forge Island, the council is demonstrating the demand for town centre living in Rotherham and providing the confidence for the private sector to invest."

The first homes are due to be available by Autumn next year and the entire scheme complete by early 2022.

Rother Living website



Images: RMBC / Bond Bryan

2 comments:

Anonymous,  March 17, 2020 at 6:15 PM  

More scrubbers I gather, the usual you get in town centres, should've built quality appatments, like of Keppel wharf, least they're not gutter snipes!

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