Ayr council housing plan announced

Aug 28 2009 by Stuart Wilson, Ayrshire Post (main ed)

A RAFT of new council houses are set to be built in Ayr.

Two sites in the town have been earmarked for large scale developments.

And South Ayrshire Council plan to apply for government funding to help with the outlay.

A total of 59 units will be spread between Thorneyflat and the old Mother’s Pride bakery site at Seaforth Road.

It’s hoped the proposal will help the council make inroads into its target of 200 affordable houses per year.

But councillor Douglas Campbell insists the hard work is only just beginning.

He said: “This represents good progress, but we still need to build 200 properties every year – and that’s not been happening.

“We’ve lost £3m of investment in recent years due to poor allocation of land, so it’s vitally important that we produce projects like this and hit our targets.”

The council will apply for a £25,000 subsidy per house as part of a new Scottish Government scheme.

Successful councils applying for funding will be informed in December.

South Ayrshire’s preferred sites for development are a council-owned plot at Thorneyflat and the former bakeries site, which is owned by Robertson Homes.

The latter site is currently being developed for affordable rented housing in partnership with a registered social landlord.

And the government has indicated that any applications encouraging partnership working will be favoured.

Councillor Campbell added: “The fear is that our young people can no longer afford to stay in South Ayrshire.

“If that’s the case, they’ll simply go elsewhere and we’ll lose so many that we don’t need to.

“Plans like this are imperative if we’re to flourish and keep the future generations here.”