CASE STUDY 35
EVEN WITH BACKING FROM LOCAL PLANS, SINCE SUBMITTING THE APPLICATION THE JV’S JOURNEY TO CONSENT HAS NOT BEEN PLAIN SAILING
retirement homes, and Anchor Hanover claims to be England’s largest not-for- profit provider of specialist housing and care for people in later life.
The proposed site for the partnership’s fifth retirement community so far is located on the former oyal orks site a brownfield plot on Coleshill treet. ast year the undertook research with I Economics in order to consider the economic viability of redeveloping the site, and constructing units as well as considering its impact on the area, being near the local town centre and high street.
The conclusions of this research indicated that the development would be financially worthwhile for the partnership and the local area. It was predicted to generate around .m of resource investment per year, over m of which would be in local businesses. ane Ashcroft CE, chief executive of
Anchor, expressed her excitement about the plan The changing needs of our ageing society mean demand for specialist housing, and care is strong and growing across all price points. e have ambitious plans to provide more homes where people love living in later life and to do so more quickly. e’re keen to work with a range of partners to meet that demand and support the overnment’s obective of more accessible housing for older people. ur partnership with cCarthy tone will help us to achieve these aims.
ACHIEVING CONSENT
ue to the nature of the . hectare site acquired, some works would be necessary before its development including the demolition of a house to improve access to the site.
The land, bordered by homes and a railway line, formerly held a mix of industrial factory and office buildings, but these had since been demolished. The plot was predominantly scrub land with mature trees forming the boundary to the site, and the site displayed a considerable level change from west to east, another aspect that needed to be considered in the plans.
ocated in a predominantly residential area, the site is close to utton Coldfield town centre, and being located near to the local high street, is well placed to access the town’s amenities, including a newsagents, butchers, bakery, pub, and local cafe.
espite the often contentious planning
restrictions in locations like this, the site had previously been included within the council’s most recent trategic Housing and Availability Assessment HAA, which noted that the former industrial land was suitable for residential development.
TACKLING THE OPPOSITION
Even with backing from local plans, since submitting the application in February , the ’s ourney to getting consent has not been plain sailing. orking closely with irmingham City Council and statutory consultees to produce a design that was appropriate for the site and which would work for all in the local community, the partnership brought in a range of local stakeholders and residents to consult them on their input and include their feedback where possible.
As part of this, a virtual exhibition was held to increase awareness and communication among locals, the exhibition showcasing the plans and giving the public the chance to comment on the proect in person.
espite the proposed site being disused land, the faced some concerns from the locals as to the potential impact on the area, both visually and economically. These included concerns that the homes should be allocated to younger families perceived by some to spend more money and contribute more to the local economy, as well as arguments made that more local housing is needed for young people in the area. thers were concerned about the impact of the skyline of the area, with the original plan’s higher stories likely to be visible from across the area being seen as an undesirable outcome.
Hoping to address as many of these concerns as possible, the consultation process has resulted in reducing both buildings by one storey from the original plans which was hoped to sufficiently reduce any perceived visual impact. And, following its research with I Economics which demonstrated the money the proect will bring to the local economy, the hoped the demographic concerns of its residents would be further addressed.
THE PROPOSED PROJECT ith the plan now finalised and given planning consent, the new site entrance partly covering the area occupied by the demolished house is set to begin
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