Flats scheme on gasworks site set for approval

The proposed housing mix is 186 one-bed and 198 two-bed flats

Plans for a landmark residential development on a former gasworks site appear set to be approved.

Southampton City Council will determine the application for the land near St Mary’s Stadium on 4 June, with officers recommending approval.

The proposal features 384 build-to-rent flats spread across four blocks ranging from eight to 17 storeys high.

Hawkstone Properties Ltd and SGN Place submitted the planning application for the site in Britannia Road in 2022.

The council said the scheme would also feature "new high-quality public realm and green spaces"

The proposed housing mix is 186 one-bed and 198 two-bed flats, although there will be no affordable housing as part of the development, which is in the Northam area of the city.

There would be 176 on-site car parking spaces and private balconies will be provided with 264 of the flats.

Residents will have a concierge alongside shared amenity spaces, including a library, and a gym.

The gasholders have already been removed from the site, which had been a gas works and holder station since the 1880s.

'Distinctive gateway'

An officer report to the panel said that the proposed development "will create a high quality and distinctive gateway at the eastern edge of the city centre".

They added that "new high-quality public realm and green spaces" would also be provided "which integrate into the overall street pattern”.

But the City of Southampton Society objected to the application, saying the site was "isolated" and not suitable for residential development.

“There are no local shops, restaurants, bars or cafes to support a new community of young professionals, such as graduates, who we understand are the key clients for this development,” it added.

A design and access statement said the scheme includes a “tall landmark building” with commercial floorspace on the ground floor.

The statement said the "landscape-led scheme" would retain the industrial heritage of the site and "aid with housing delivery in the Southampton city centre".

Another apartments construction at Southampton’s Bargate Quarter is expected to restart this summer.