Agenda item

(Director of Communities) To consider the attached report (CHB-019-2014/15).

(1)        That the strategic approach adopted by the Cabinet Committee at its meeting in February 2014 continues for the prioritisation of potential sites;      

 

(2)        That, taking account of the strategic approach for the prioritisation of potential sites, and using updated statistics as at February 2015, locations be grouped together into the following two Groups and the Priority Orders shown:

 

Group A (Locations with sites that could potentially deliver 10 or more homes):

 

Priority       Location

 

1                 Loughton

2                 Waltham Abbey

3                 Epping

4                 Ongar

5                 Buckhurst Hill

6                 North Weald

 

     Group B (Locations with sites that could potentially deliver less than 10 homes):

 

Priority       Location

 

1                 Roydon

2                 Nazeing

3                 Theydon Bois

4                 High Ongar

5                 Coopersale

6                 Matching Green/Tye

 

 

(3)        That a review of the priority orders within Groups A and B in (2) above be undertaken by the Cabinet Committee in 3-years’ time, having regard to the same strategic approach set-out in the existing Policy on the Prioritisation of sites; and

 

(4)        That, taking account of the priority order agreed by the Cabinet Committee in February 2014, Phase 3 be made up of 35 new homes on the following sites already agreed as viable by the Cabinet Committee at its meeting in December 2014, subject to the two revised feasibility studies at Queens Road, North Weald and Centre Drive (Site B), Epping, considered earlier on the agenda, being agreed, based on a total scheme cost of £6,395,477, with a subsidy requirement of £923,600:

 

a.   Queens Road, North Weald          -    12x3-bed 5P houses

b.   Bluemans End, North Weald        -    4x3-bed 5P houses

c.   Stewards Green Road, Epping     -    4x3-bed 5P houses

d.   Site A Parklands, Coopersale       -    2x1-bed 2P flats & 2x2-bed 4P houses

e.   Site C Parklands, Coopersale       -    1x2-bed 4P bungalow

f.    Centre Avenue, Epping                 -    2x3-bed 5P houses

g.   Centre Drive (Site B), Epping       -    1x3-bed 5P houses

h.   Site B Springfield, Epping             -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows

i.    Site C Springfield, Epping             -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows & 2x2-bed 4P houses

j.    79 London Road, Ongar               -    1x3-bed 5P house

 

(5)       That, subject to the sites listed in Decision (4) above being agreed, each site be progressed to detailed design stage, with planning applications being submitted and, subject to planning approval, tenders to be sought in accordance with the Procurement Strategy for House-building; and

 

(6)       That Phase 4 of the Council’s House-building Programme focusses on Ongar and Buckhurst Hill.

The Assistant Director of Housing (Property) presented a report to the Cabinet Committee,he advised that at its meeting in February 2014, the Cabinet Committee agreed a Policy on the future prioritisation of development sites based on rotating the developments around the towns/villages where sites were located, so that all areas had the benefit of affordable housing being provided in their area, with priority given to areas in which the highest number of housing applicants lived. The strategy that was agreed took account of:

 

            (a)       Towns/villages with sites that could potentially deliver the greatest number of new properties being prioritised in preference to locations where less properties could be delivered; and

 

(b)        Where possible, development packages/phases (i.e. the grouping of sites into one works contract, usually undertaken each year) should generally comprise of sites within the same town/village, in order to reduce the contractor’s site set-up costs.

 

The Assistant Director advised that although the prioritisation of locations had altered slightly in the last 12 months, it was recommended that the Policy on the Prioritisation of Sites, from which future phases, beyond Phase 3, were to be drawn up and be based on the revised ranking table below, with Phase 4 focussing on sites in Ongar and Buckhurst Hill.

 

Group A (Comprising towns/villages with sites that could potentially deliver 10 or more new homes in total)

 

Group A (Capacity for 10 or more new homes)
Priority Order	Location	No. of Housing Applicants	No. of Sites	Max. No. of Properties
1	Loughton	459	16(#)	52(#)
2	Waltham Abbey	413	18	71(*)
3	Epping	102	5	12
4	Ongar	84	2	11
5	Buckhurst Hill	70	5	23
6	North Weald	40	2	16

(*) = Including the Year 1 sites                                (#) = Excluding the sites at The Broadway

 

Group B (Comprising towns/villages with sites that could potentially deliver less than 10 new homes in total)

 

Group B (Capacity for less than 10 new homes)
Priority Order	Location	No. of Housing Applicants	No. of Sites	Max. No. of Properties
1	Roydon	23	1	3
2	Nazeing	19	2	7
3	Theydon Bois	16	2	5
4	High Ongar	13	1	2
5	Coopersale	9	3	7
6	Matching Green/Tye	2	1	2

 

With the locations already agreed by the Cabinet Committee for Phases 1 and 2 as Waltham Abbey and Loughton respectively, Phase 3 was identified in the report on the prioritisation of sites agreed by the Cabinet Committee in February 2014 as being Epping, Coopersale and North Weald. The Cabinet committee considered the feasibility studies for those sites at its meeting in December 2014, and all but three sites were considered viable. However, for two of the sites at Queens Road, North Weald and Centre Drive (Site B), Epping the Cabinet Committee asked that these be redrawn to achieve a different mix of properties, which had been presented and agreed in an earlier Agenda item.

 

It was therefore recommended that Phase 3 be made up of 35 new homes on the following sites, being approved as viable, based on a total scheme cost of £6,395,477, with a subsidy requirement of £923,600:

 

a)     Queens Road, North Weald       -    12x3-bed 5P houses

b)     Bluemans End, North Weald      -    4x3-bed 5P houses

c)     Stewards Green Road, Epping   -    4x3-bed 5P houses

d)     Site A Parklands, Coopersale     -    2x1-bed 2P flats & 2x2-bed 4P houses

e)     Site C Parklands, Coopersale    -    1x2-bed 4P bungalow

f)      Centre Avenue, Epping              -    2x3-bed 5P houses

g)     Centre Drive (Site B), Epping     -    1x3-bed 5P houses

h)     Site B Springfield, Epping           -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows

i)       Site C Springfield, Epping           -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows & 2x2-bed 4P houses

j)       79 London Road, Ongar             -    1x3-bed 5P house

 

Recommended:

 

(1)        That the strategic approach adopted by the Cabinet Committee at its meeting in February 2014 continues for the prioritisation of potential sites;      

 

(2)        That, taking account of the strategic approach for the prioritisation of potential sites, and using updated statistics as at February 2015, locations be grouped together into the following two Groups and the Priority Orders shown:

 

Group A (Locations with sites that could potentially deliver 10 or more homes):

 

Priority       Location

 

1                 Loughton

2                 Waltham Abbey

3                 Epping

4                 Ongar

5                 Buckhurst Hill

6                 North Weald

 

     Group B (Locations with sites that could potentially deliver less than 10 homes):

 

Priority       Location

 

1                 Roydon

2                 Nazeing

3                 Theydon Bois

4                 High Ongar

5                 Coopersale

6                 Matching Green/Tye

 

(3)        That a review of the priority orders within Groups A and B in (2) above be undertaken by the Cabinet Committee in 3-years’ time, having regard to the same strategic approach set-out in the existing Policy on the Prioritisation of sites; and

 

(4)        That, taking account of the priority order agreed by the Cabinet Committee in February 2014, Phase 3 be made up of 35 new homes on the following sites already agreed as viable by the Cabinet Committee at its meeting in December 2014, subject to the two revised feasibility studies at Queens Road, North Weald and Centre Drive (Site B), Epping, considered earlier on the agenda, being agreed, based on a total scheme cost of £6,395,477, with a subsidy requirement of £923,600:

 

a)     Queens Road, North Weald       -    12x3-bed 5P houses

b)     Bluemans End, North Weald      -    4x3-bed 5P houses

c)     Stewards Green Road, Epping   -    4x3-bed 5P houses

d)     Site A Parklands, Coopersale     -    2x1-bed 2P flats & 2x2-bed 4P houses

e)     Site C Parklands, Coopersale    -    1x2-bed 4P bungalow

f)      Centre Avenue, Epping              -    2x3-bed 5P houses

g)     Centre Drive (Site B), Epping     -    1x3-bed 5P houses

h)     Site B Springfield, Epping           -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows

i)       Site C Springfield, Epping           -    2x1-bed 2P bungalows & 2x2-bed 4P houses

j)       79 London Road, Ongar             -    1x3-bed 5P house

 

(5)       That, subject to the sites listed in Decision (4) above being agreed, each site be progressed to detailed design stage, with planning applications being submitted and, subject to planning approval, tenders to be sought in accordance with the Procurement Strategy for House-building; and

 

(6)       That Phase 4 of the Council’s House-building Programme focusses on Ongar and Buckhurst Hill.

 

Reasons for Decision:

 

There was a need to review the prioritisation of potential sites for development based on the demand from those registered on the Council’s housing waiting list, and also to agree the sites that were to go forward for Phase 3 of the Council House-building Programme.

 

Other Options Considered and Rejected:

 

The main alternative options appear to be:

 

(a)        To adopt a different approach to the prioritisation of sites – of which there are a myriad of alternatives;

 

(b)        To alter the list of sites proposed for Phase 3; and

 

(c)        To review the prioritisation of sites in 12-months’ time. However, due to the lead-in time to develop the feasibility studies and undertake the legal checks, it makes planning future phases difficult if the priority order changes on an annual basis.