Housing estate from 1960s to be torn down
- Published
A 1960s housing estate will be torn down to make way for new homes.
Work to flatten Trafalgar House, Kerry House, and Milestone House in Spon End, Coventry, is due to start in October.
It is the first part of a planned £120m regeneration of the area by social housing provider Citizen.
Residents of 158 flats across the three old blocks have had to move out under the scheme announced four years ago.
In a page on its website, Citizen said it had been “working closely with our customers in Kerry, Milestone and Trafalgar House to help them with their move to a new home".
Coventry City Council approved the move to demolish the empty blocks last week.
Citizen aims to start redevelopment work as soon as the buildings have been knocked down, according to documents submitted with plans.
However, if there is a delay, a “temporary wildflower meadow” will be planted on the site.
Work on the project must start by next March if the group is to get funding from Homes England, according to documents.
The latest scheme earmarked for Spon End was shared with the public for consultation last month.
It showed that the 158 flats due to be knocked down would be replaced by 236 mostly two-bedroom homes.
These would be “modern and energy efficient”, plans claim, and built across four blocks ranging from five to nine storeys high.
The site would also get better car parking and potentially a “community hub".
The aim was to finish by March 2028, Citizen said.
Plans for major redevelopment of the wider area are due to be lodged with Coventry City Council this summer.
A total of 750 new homes are planned elsewhere in Spon End, of which 30% would be classed affordable.
Nine existing buildings are included in the second phase of the scheme. These are Spon Gate House, George Poole House, Grindlay House, Drinkwater House, Givens House, Gardner House, Fennel House, Winslow House and Corrie House.
The third stage involves Wellington Gardens, Sherbourne Street and numbers 85 to 99 on Upper Spon Street.
Other changes that have been put forward include a riverside boardwalk, new cycle routes and wildlife habitats.
This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.
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