Plans to build 221 co-living studio flats

The project would see buildings up to seven storeys high built in Melbourne Street, Brighton

Plans to build 221 co-living studio apartments in East Sussex are to go before councillors next week, with officials recommending that the scheme is approved.

The project would see buildings up to seven storeys high built in Melbourne Street, Brighton.

Co-living allows individuals or groups to rent a property with shared facilities.

Brighton & Hove City Council refused a previous application for 269 co-living flats at the same site in March last year.

The plans for what is currently Enterprise Point include a co-working area with 1,060 sq metre (11,410 sq ft) of business space – room for 410 desks, meeting rooms and a cinema room.

London firm Kosy Co Living EP, which submitted the application alongside Crowborough company Cross Stone Securities, said a bedroom in one of its co-living units would cost £1,440 a month including bills, fully equipped rooms, use of the gym, cleaning and access to the co-working space.

The council has received 84 letters objecting to the scheme and 34 letters of support, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Supporters said that Enterprise Point was a “blight” on the landscape, while those objecting said that there was a need for family homes rather than co-living flats.

Councillors are being urged to grant planning permission subject to conditions, which include a £2.5m payment towards affordable housing elsewhere in Brighton and Hove, a five-year travel plan and employing local workers for at least 20% of the demolition work.

The application is due to go before the council’s planning committee on 8 May.

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