Blackpool seeks affordable housing partner

The council is looking to appoint a contractor to deliver 74 homes at Troutbeck Crescent in a project to replace five three-storey blocks considered “unfit for purpose”.

Blackpool Council is planning to build a mix of terraced homes and flats on the site, all for affordable rent.

These will replace 81 apartments on the site, which were managed by Blackpool Coastal Housing; Blackpool Council owns the freehold, and decided to regenerate the site given the “continuing unpopularity” of the existing apartments with council tenants.

The council also described the existing buildings as “unfit for purpose” and argued these did “not make a positive contribution to the character or appearance of the wider area”.

Designed by architect Cassidy + Ashton, the proposals will see a mix of two and three-bed houses delivered, all of which will be affordable tenures. A green space bordering the site will be retained, while the development will link to the wider Mereside Estate and the proposed Whyndyke Garden Village.

Consultation on the plans has been held since November 2018.

Planning consent has been recommended when the council’s planning committee meets next week; Blackpool has also issued a notice via OJEU to appoint a design-and-build construction partner to deliver the project, subject to planning approval.