Second phase of co-living village approved

Plans for more than 200 co-living flats in four to seven-storey blocks have been given the green light.

The plans, for Enterprise Point, at 16-18 Melbourne Street, Brighton, are the second phase of a new homes project by London firm Kosy Co Living EP and Crowborough company Cross Stone Securities.

Nine members of Brighton and Hove City Council’s Planning Committee voted to approve the scheme when they met on Wednesday, 8 May.

The application is a storey lower than the 269 co-living flats originally refused permission by the Planning Committee in March last year.

But the developer appealed and the larger scheme has already been approved by the Planning Inspectorate.

The flats include communal kitchens, living rooms, a shared gym and laundry, with an en-suite bathroom and kitchenette in each studio room.

Councillors were told co-living accommodation is marketed at the high proportion of single people living in the city.

They heard a quarter of the city’s residents are in their 20s and early 30s, a quarter of households in the city live in one-bedroom accommodation and of these 40 per cent rent in the private sector.

The applicant’s agent Robert Shaw, director of Third Revolution Projects, said: “We are very confident through our own experience across the country that demand is there.

“There is no age limit, if older people want to live in these there is no restriction. The general cohort these are attractive to is generally younger.”

Mr Shaw said the price included a furnished home, cleaning, communal facilities, co-working space, wifi, gym and council tax.

Brighton and Hove Independent councillor Mark Earthey asked whether the commuted sum of £2.4 million was a suitable figure as no affordable homes would be offered on site.

Housing officer Kristen Sjovorr explained the council would not nominate people on the housing register for homes in the co-living space as it only houses people with registered providers such as housing association.

She said: “What can do with £2.4 million is use that money to provide affordable socially rented housing or affordable rented housing, which we know for sure can go to meet the needs of people on the housing register.

“While it might not be as much as we would like in a perfect world, it is going to go some way to meet the housing needs of those most in need.

Conservative councillor Carol Theobald voted in favour of the previous application and was pleased to see the new plans are not as high.

She said: “What is there now is actually an ugly mess. It’s a blight on Brighton’s landscape.

“The number of units has been reduced, the height lowered, and it’s set back from Melbourne Street, so a lot of thought has gone into this.”

Labour councillor Joy Robinson said it would be a matter of time to see if the communal flats would have an impact on HMOs.

She said: “I think it’s a new concept and a concept the city needs.

“It may well serve the purpose for those straight out of university.”

Green councillor Raphael Hill felt the rent is too high but understood that was not a planning consideration and the committee did not have a strong case to turn the application down.

Councillor Hill was concerned Roundhill ward would not benefit from the Community Infrastructure Levy as the development is in Hanover and Elm Grove.

Labour councillor Tobias Sheard was the only member of the committee to vote against the plans.

He said: “People for whom this kind of accommodation is perfect for will not be able to afford it.

“I think it’s going to be massively pricing people out and I see it having don’t think it’s going to have an impact on housing stock as I don’t think it will pull people out of HMOs.”

Labour councillor Tobias Sheard was the only member of the committee to vote against the plans.

He said: “People for whom this kind of accommodation is perfect for will not be able to afford it.

“I think it’s going to be massively pricing people out and I see it having don’t think it’s going to have an impact on housing stock as I don’t think it will pull people out of HMOs.”