Green light for major estate development

More than 700 new homes will be built

Coventry City Council has approved a "once in a generation opportunity" to revamp three buildings on a 1960s housing estate.

Spon End, Coventry, will have more than 700 new homes as part of a £120m regeneration of the area, announced in 2019 by social housing provider Citizen.

A number of councillors raised concerns over a shortage of parking spaces but the council's planning committee approved the project for a site between Meadow Street, Upper Spon Street and Butts Road.

Councillor Seyi Agboola said the scheme would "breathe new life into the area, supporting local shops and businesses" and make it "safer and more attractive".

He said: "This is a once in a generation opportunity to revitalise one of our city's most historic and important neighbourhoods."

The redevelopment will be spread over three phases with work on the first likely to start in March next year, with the final phase aiming to be complete in 2035.

"It will generate construction jobs, support the local economy and help meet our housing targets," the councillor stated.

"We have a fantastic opportunity to transform Spon End by delivering affordable housing, greener public spaces and a stronger community."

The project is the first stage of a £120m redevelopment of Spon End

The first phase will see 257 apartments built in four separate blocks. These will be one and two-bedroom units, 100 per cent affordable, with two of the blocks featuring commercial premises on the ground floor.

The second phase will see a further 462 one, two and three-bedroom apartments built, a quarter of which will be affordable, while the final phase will see 27 two, three and four-bedroom houses built.

These will have two parking spaces each but the apartments elsewhere will have roughly one space for every three units.

Councillor Lindsley Harvard, one of the members who raised concerns over the number of parking spaces, said: "Even though I have some criticism of this [scheme] I won't oppose it.

"It is not balanced in terms of parking."

He added: "Coventry doesn't have the kind of transport network that London has where you don't need a car. You probably don't need one in Manchester, Newcastle or Leeds but Coventry doesn't have that standard of public transport.

"I am also concerned by the lack of three and four-bedroom homes with none at all in the first two phases."

Harvard abstained when voting but the remaining members of the planning committee voted in favour of the plans.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations.