Councillors have unanimously backed plans for 15 new council flats on a former community centre site.
Brighton and Hove City Council can now move forward with building a three-story block of 15 flats on the former Windlesham House site on the corner of Windlesham Close and Locks Crescent, near Southern Cross.
The flats will be available at council-level affordable rents to people on the housing register.
During the Planning Committee meeting on Wednesday 7 August councillors raised concerns that food-growing areas would not form part of the wider landscaping and were told the existing residents were not interested in the option.
Green councillor Sue Shanks said: “We need social housing, and this is 100 per cent.
“I am a bit concerned we asked residents [if they wanted a food growing area] and they said no – but the council has a policy about growing space.
“Residents will change, next week a different resident might like to do gardening.
“Existing tenants’ views are important, but when we have a policy on growing space then we should persist with that.”
Labour councillor Julie Cattell agreed with Councillor Shanks about the growing space.
She said: “Growing space is something we should be encouraging in our design policies.
“I think the design is simple, good and clean. ”
Conservative councillor Carol Theobald asked why there is no lift in one of the two buildings.
She was told this is because a lift would stop flats in that block having windows on more than one wall, but only four of the 15 homes would only be accessed via steps.
Councillor Theobald said: “I would have liked to have had the lift in the western block as people will have to carry their food shopping up flights and it’s not disabled friendly.
“I would also liked to have had a few car spaces, because there will be visitors and deliveries and the design could be more interesting, but I’m so glad there is this much-needed affordable housing.”
The flats would be built as part of the council’s New Homes for Neighbourhoods scheme – an estate regeneration programme to tackle Brighton and Hove’s shortage of affordable housing.
Windlesham House has been empty since 2018, having previously operated as a day centre for the elderly and more recently as the WRVS’s base for Meals on Wheels.
The existing building suffers with water damage and has fallen into disrepair.
Portslade, not Hove
Why do they make the buildings so ugly? It’s very close to a conservation area with lovely buildings. No wonder the councils get opposition. It’s like the 60’s in Brighton and Hove when planning left us with ugly concrete blocks in pretty regency areas, in and around the seafront. Modernising buildings can have pretty designs!
It’s the soviet tendency that Labour councils have 🤦♂️🤦♂️
Get the local artists in residence to do some work on it. Honestly, with the talent of some of them, just give them a canvas and watch them work their magic.
15 more homes at social rents will be another win, it’s all adding up.
Where is the independent oversight for this decision?
What ugly flats near a Conservation Area. Do poor people automatically = prison style architecture? if that’s
the artist’s impression you can bet the real thing will be ten times grimmer.
Also why are private developers allowed to build hundreds of flats for the rich – ie the overdevelopment of Hove Station neighbourhood and against the council’s own tall buildings policy when social housing is always so small scale?
In answer to your Tall Building *Guidance* question – it’s not against it at all. 5.1 of the guidance defines this very clearly.
“Independent oversight” includes the planning application being submitted and processed just as any other application would be.
Public consultation – including articles in the B&H News (which most applications don’t get) as well as the public being able to submit comments of support and objection.
Public report to the planning committee by planning officers
Discussion and vote at a public meeting of the planning committee.
What more so you want?
Housing for the “poor” never attracts genius architects, just slum builders with the adequate bankroll, homes for the better off and rich can and do make demands which they pay for. House builders are required to include “affordable” housing in their projects but mostly that gets ignored or minimised because it makes expensive homes difficult sellers, which brings it back to building blocks and units for the “poor” people even if it’s next to but not included in the money peoples housing units area. Money talks,,, mostly
Although being cost effective is an important consideration, is it not? If that means simplified designs, but more people in the long-term have a roof over their head, that’s a good thing, I would have thought?
Or do you prefer a more Kantish approach?