THE SITE of Denton’s former swimming pool will be turned into 35 apartments if planning permission is granted.
Collaborate Living and Irwell Valley Homes are spearheading the proposal to place a three-storey block of one and two-bedroomed units at the Victoria Street land.
And documents supporting the application state: “It will improve amenity by bringing a poor-quality space back into use.”
Previous proposals to build a four-storey unit on the site have been scaled back after concerns it would be too high and overlook nearby Victoria Park.
And the applicants revealed the role the town’s MP, Andrew Gwynne, played in shaping the scheme.
Documents add: “Following further discussions with the MP, it was agreed that a three-storey proposal would be better suited within the site context, to avoid any overbearing impact on Victoria Park, the surrounding monuments and the adjacent Town Hall.
“Following a slight internal reconfiguration, the reduction in levels reduced the number of apartments down to 35.”
Irwell Valley Homes believe the apartments – 27 one-bedroomed and eight two-bedroomed – will be ‘a secure outward looking scheme for affordable rent.’
Housing will be provided ‘for families and young professionals as well as older residents (over 55s) with the aim of creating a balanced community and to promote tenure diversification in the area.’
And, according to the application, it will ‘reinforce the existing ‘Sense of Place,’ adding further identity to the existing community as an extension of the neighbouring housing area.’
It also states: “The intention is to create an attractive and active street scene along Victoria Street, as well as active frontages within the public realm of Victoria Park.
“A soft buffer zone is to be formulated between dwellings and the surrounding public spaces, whilst providing an attractive public realm.
“This will help promote a sense of ownership in the dwellings, encouraging pride in the area, reducing crime and anti-social behaviour whilst providing a desirable place to live.
“Small private gardens are included to all ground floor accommodation as well as a large shared communal garden adjacent to Victoria Park.
“The continuation of the treeline along Victoria Street into the site helps to tie the proposals into the surrounding streetscape, nestling the development into its overall surroundings.”
Planning permission will be granted or refused by Tameside Council’s Speaker’s Panel (Planning) committee.
What about the local homeless and those with mental health problems? Those people are the most vulnerable in society, even more so than some of the over 55s. If we’re lucky, we get to live in very unstable environments, which prolongs our recoveries and puts an unnecessary burden on society.
Sometimes I wonder if you really want us to rebuild our lives. At times, I feel like a cash cow that feeds the more fortunate.
Some of us have been violently attacked due to people who know nothing about mental health problems. We get false labels put on us. It’s completely out order!
I keep reading and hearing about the word diversity, but it has no meaning when you exclude sections of society.
Irwell Valley is social housing, so where’re the people who’re on their housing list living now? Are they without a home? Are they actually the neediest?
When young professionals are offered social housing, it’s evidence of wages being too low or the price of homes being too high, so why not introduce a rent cap relative to people’s earnings in the specific area? You’ll save on housing benefit, won’t you? I though the government wanted to reduce the benefit bill.
I don’t boast some super IQ, nor do I have access to all the data, so maybe I am way off base. But if the taxpayer funds the construction of new homes, then pays again in housing benefit, wouldn’t this be poor value for money? Wouldn’t it be cheaper to give some of these homes away for free to young professionals? The issue of property maintenance is easily solved.
I hear Tally-ho old chappies, so I’ll be off,
According to Statistica, “In 2023/24 the government of the United Kingdom is expected to spend approximately 15.6 billion British pounds on housing benefits”, so wouldn’t building new homes specifically for tenants claiming housing benefit increase the bill?
Also, there are the billions spent on the construction and maintenance of affordable/social homes similar) every year at the expense of the taxpayer.
As a single Tameside resident, I’m only entitled to £120.82 per week, so roughly 483 per month in LHA. If most private 1 person apartments in the area were capped at say £500 per month, then anyone in my situation would be able to rent privately without an issue. We would be free to choose an apartment that is suitable.
Furthermore, young professionals would get a reduced rent without the hassle of claiming benefits and the attached stigma.
If some people are getting extra money on top of the local housing allowance, then how are they doing it? I don’t know. If this is partly why the benefit bill is out of control and the reasoning behind your counter argument, perhaps the government needs to look at a variable formula for the price of most private housing, and rented housing, in correlation with the income of normal people within the area.
From what I can see – at a glance – the high street, people’s available income, well-being, levels of crime are all being affected by the high cost of housing and energy. It could even be argued that it fuels racism.
Let’s be honest, the UK is a complete mess!
I foresee even the rich will loose out in the end because they never look at the bigger picture. I don’t want to spoil the surprise.
Maybe I’m talking nonsense. Maybe I should probably finish my bacon butty off.
Peace out playerz. I can’t be bothered proofreading it. Rant over,
Yet again this council are not considering the impact on the wider community. Irwell ballet have a lousy reputation re housing and care for their properties. Where are bins etc going to be stored. Parking is a huge issue now. This will have a detrimental affect on many. Do the right thing for once TMBC and listen to the community. Open a community space with a community park. Which directly benefits the area. Not something that will end up like the eyesore that is advocates house. That beautiful building is being allowed to go to wrack and ruin. Rubbish piled high. Bins all on the pavement. Right by the Town hall too. How embarrassing for a council to have these utter eyesores right by their town hall. It will show any dignitaries just how little TMBC care for their town or its community. Shame huge shame if you allow this. Go look at Vernon park community cafe and space. That’s what should be utilised in front of our only green space in Denton town centre not this ugly block of flats.
I think a great deal of people didn’t advocate the goings on at advocates house. Apparently, they didn’t provide an adequate means of escape from the basement, but I guess that was all part of the customer experience. I wonder if there will be a return of the kinky society – it could be a movie. Whatever people’s views of them – live and let live – they don’t lack in the creativity department.
With the exception of the Hong Kong community, most people who visit Denton go to Crown Point North and don’t visit the square area, so maybe apartments aren’t the best option for the community.
Putting jokes to one side, why not apply for lottery funding and create a community film studio? I mean , have you seen the garbage films/series that’re available these days? It’s hardly the quality of the 90s.
Another nail bar might go down a treat lol. Interestingly, it’s possible to create another business with the name ‘nail bar’ that hasn’t been done before. The clue is in the name. Can anyone guess the new business? Could the idea be applied anywhere else?
If you think like a coder, the house price problem makes sense: increase or decrease the house prices to predefined constants(in stages) called by current society conditions but set max and min limits to sensible levels. Everything needs some control or anarchy prevails. We have some control over the price of homes, but the energy price is somewhat beyond our control, or is it?
The current sources used to create electricity are: solar, wind, tidal, water, nuclear, thermal, fossil fuels, bio fuels kinetic etc, with the latter being a bit irrelevant in this context. But is there another way to generate electricity? Of course, there is because I just thought of one. It’s ever so simple when you think about it.
This took me about 2 mins to come up with – with my morning sleepy head on.