Stockport could get new tower with no affordable homes
A 20-storey tower could be built in Stockport town centre despite concerns about it having no affordable homes.
A scheme to demolish the derelict Victoria House building and Fletcher Street car park have been recommended for approval by Stockport council's officers, ahead of a town hall meeting on July 3 where councillors will vote on the plans.
Developed by Progressive Living and managed by Picture This, the project has been supported with a £5.7m grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, and will bring 245 new homes to the town.
They will be a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments, and 12 two-bed townhouses, in a build-to-rent development with plans for a rooftop garden and community spaces on the ground floor.
The scheme has been designed to be 'car free' apart from 11 accessible bays in a central courtyard, accessed from Fletcher Street.
A Stockport council report on the plans states that Victoria House – built in the 1960s – was once home to offices but is now empty and has fallen into a 'very poor condition' with demolition needed.
The surface car park at Fletcher Street sits below Victoria House and is used as a pay and display car park, with space for up to 87 cars.
However, concerns were raised by councillors about the lack of affordable homes in the scheme.
Speaking at the Central Stockport Area Committee meeting on June 19, Manor Cllr Sue Glithero said: "I'm exasperated, you've got 245 units and none of them can be affordable in the town centre?
"Are we becoming an offshoot of Manchester, with really tall apartments in Stockport town centre for professionals? Are we just becoming gentrified?
"Because I cannot believe that a developer with 245 units, that will cost a fortune for each individual one, that we can't have any affordable housing, when we're having what I'm presuming is Greater Manchester grant money, public money. I don't understand it, I really am exasperated by it."
A Stockport council officer said brownfield development "is expensive" and "is relying on public subsidy" in the town centre at the moment.
According to council reports, the applicant has argued that 'financial viability prohibits the provision of any affordable housing units within the development.'
The recommendation for approval from Stockport council officers comes subject to an agreement for a 'late-stage viability review in respect of affordable housing' and other elements of the design.
Edgeley Cllr Matt Wynne said questions over affordable housing and parking spaces are "critical", but supported the plans overall.
He said at the June 19 meeting: "This site has been an eyesore for some time, Victoria House, it's an absolute state at the moment, I'd probably say it's the worst site in the town centre if not the borough."
In January, Progressive Living director David Fairclough said the firm bought Victoria House six years ago with a "clear vision of the town's potential as a vibrant place to live and invest."
He added: "After collaborating with the council to integrate the two sites, we are excited to play a key role in Stockport's growth story and its continued economic success."
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