Housing plan aims to create 'vibrant' city centre

The development will change the landscape of the Darley Street area of Bradford city centre

A proposed housing development will help prevent the city centre from being a place which "empties out at 18:00", according to a council.

In an update to Bradford's City Village regeneration plans last week, councillors were told the focus would not be on social housing, but on making the city centre a more attractive place for developers and investors.

The scheme will see 1,000 homes built on three sites – the former Oastler Market, the Kirkgate Centre and car parks near Chain Street, off Westgate.

Councillor Alex Ross Shaw said: "We do want to increase social housing across the district. But with this we want to lift the market in the city centre by providing quality housing."

The planning application for Phase 1 of the works was submitted earlier this month and will be delivered by ECF (the partnership between Homes England, L&G and Muse) and Bradford Council.

It has already secured £13.2m from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and £30m of government funding from Homes England.

When councillor Anna Watson asked if any social housing would be included in the scheme, she was told the Chain Street area would see a mix of shared ownership and affordable rental homes.

Members were told the high costs of developing city centre sites would mean any social housing would require a huge amount of public subsidy – on top of what is already being provided.

Council director of place Dave Shepherd said the development needed public money because the "viability gap was too high for the private sector".

He said the low value of properties in the city centre meant few developers were willing to invest in high-quality housing, and the hope was this subsidised scheme would make the city centre a place where future developers feel they will get a return on their investment.

He told members another aim was to make the city centre a "vibrant" place, even after shops shut and workers went home, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The scheme will include ground floor business units that could be taken up by shops, cafes and bars, as well as new parks and green spaces.

Mr Shephard said: "We want the City Village to get to a point where it can sustain further retail activity and a night-time economy. It will be a place where there is activity 24/7, rather than a city centre that empties out at 18:00."

On Thursday, West Yorkshire Combined Authority agreed a further £1.2m of funding to develop the plans for Phase 2 of the project.

Bradford Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said City Village would make the city centre "a great place for people to live and work".

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