Julia Keeling and Kathy Bourassa, representing Housing Development at the City Council will be attending the meeting to outline proposals for local authority new-build housing schemes planned for the area: -
i) Manor Farm – Phase 2
ii) Laburnum Road – Phase 2 (74 properties)
Minutes:
Members of the community received updates on proposals for local authority new-build housing schemes as follows:
Manor Farm – Phase 2
April Knapp and Kanti Chhapi from the East Midlands Housing Group provided an update on phase 2 of the Manor Farm development. The meeting heard this would follow on from Phase 1 and would probably be similar in style and architecture.
The proposal was for supported housing and single storey dwellings; all the single storey dwellings would be wheel chair accessible. Officers were still in discussion with Adult Services regarding the type of assistance that would be offered to residents; it was possible that these might be ‘moving on’ dwellings for residents who wanted less assistance than that offered in the dwellings in phase 1. An attendee commented that frequently, people with disabilities wanted to live their lives as independently as possible; but appreciated there being a ‘safety net’ in-case something went wrong.
In response to a query, officers advised that some of the properties in phase 1 of the project were privately owned, but properties in the second phase would all be rented.
Laburnum Road – Phase 2
Julia Keeling and Kathy Bourassa from Housing Development outlined proposals for a new development for 74 affordable council houses on Laburnum Road, some of which would offer supported housing. The development would help to address the demand for homes as the local authority has many people waiting on their housing register.
Strong concerns were raised from residents over the proposals. Comments were made that that Hamilton was being over developed, that the schools were already full and that there were problems over vehicular access and traffic into Laburnum Road. Concerns were also expressed that there could be housing management problems because of the large number of affordable rented homes being provided in one location for households on the Housing Register.
Officers responded that there was a need for housing and as the council did not have a great deal of land to build on, it needed to maximise the opportunities it did have. The demand for school places had been taken into account and generally would be reflected in the developer’s contributions. Officers were also working with the police architectural liaison; however it was suggested that it would be useful to meet with the police and officers from housing outside of the meeting.
The Chair stated that she agreed with the concerns raised by attendees and added that the local services and the G.P.s were also full. It would not help to have another 70 to 80 houses built in Hamilton. The Chair added that there should have been more consultation.
Officers explained that there had previously been an outline planning application which had expired and they did not know until about 8 weeks ago, that funding was available for this. The general view of the meeting was that before a planning application had been submitted, officers should have consulted with ward councillors, the community and local services.
An attendee suggested that the money should be spent on improving existing homes and bringing them up to standard; however officers explained that the funding available needed to be spent on new buildings. The Chair requested that more money should be available for making improvements to existing homes.
Julia Keeling informed attendees of her contact details if they should wish to contact her after the meeting:
Julia.keeling@leicester.gov.uk
Telephone: 454 1751