Agenda item

The Business Manager – Strategic Housing and the Director – Safety presented a report which provided an update on the masterplan proposals developed for the Yorke Drive Estate and the Lincoln Road Playing Fields in Bridge Ward which had been brought about using funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Estate Regeneration Programme.

The Members considered the detail and outcomes of the consultation exercises undertaken with residents by Campbell Tickell who had been appointed by the Council to project manage the process of community consultation, developing a masterplan, undertaking viability modelling, securing a planning consent and advising on development delivery options.

The resulting masterplan layout was based on 4 phases and was shown at Appendix A to the report. Overall, the scheme provided 325 new homes with a net gain of 195 new homes given that 130 homes would be demolished. 13 of the properties to be demolished were privately owned and would need to be acquired by the Council. The phases had been geared to facilitate decanting of residents based on the household survey outcome which indicated that 80% of residents wanted to stay in the area. The resulting mix continued to assume a base 30% rent and 70% sale tenure split, although this could be flexed if it turned out that more tenants wanted to remain on the estate.

The revised scheme was presented to the Residents Panel and was the basis of the scheme for which an outline planning application was sought. The overall timetable for the project was to obtain planning approval by March 2019 and reserved matters approval for Phase 1 by March 2020, with a start on site by November 2020. On this basis the first homes would be completed by 2022 and the whole project would take until 2028 to complete, at this stage the project timetable was very much indicative and subject to change.

The report also provided details of an opportunity to purchase one of the owner occupied properties within the area of the Yorke Drive estate proposed for demolition. This could be funded by the site acquisition fund within the HRA. The report also provided details of the key principles of the ‘Residents Offer’ which would provide rehousing and compensation options for owners and occupants of properties which were required for demolition should the scheme go ahead.

It was noted that the project had a current funding gap, the extent of which would only be know once the planning application had been approved, development delivery structures had been identified and the Council had selected a development partner. The current financial modelling for the project was detailed in an exempt appendix.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

(a)     the progress made with the masterplan proposals for the regeneration and development of the Yorke Drive Estate and the Lincoln Road Playing Fields in Bridge Ward, using funding from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Estate Regeneration Programme be noted;

(b)     the submission of an outline planning application on the basis of the masterplan proposals set out at Appendix A be approved, with delegated authority being given to the Director – Safety to agree any minor amendments;

(c)     the Principles of the “Residents Offer” as outlined in the report be approved and authorisation be given for the development of more detailed rehousing and compensation policies for households affected by demolition to be submitted to a future meeting of the Committee for final consideration and approval;

(d)     initial Demolition Notices be issued to tenants whose properties have been identified for demolition as part of the scheme, accompanied by an explanatory letter to those affected residents;

(e)     the acquisition of a non-resident owner property affected by the demolition, which has become available for sale, be approved, to be financed from the already allocated and approved HRA acquisition fund; and

(f)      the funding position of the scheme covered in the Exempt Item at Appendix B and the next steps in identifying a private developer partner to assist in taking the project forward, be noted.

Reason for Decision

To progress the ‘transformational project’, focussing on the regeneration of the Yorke Drive estate and Lincoln Road playing fields.

(Councillor Mrs I. Brown left the meeting during consideration of this item).