Large housing redevelopment for Crawley site south of railway line approved

Plans to build 121 flats in a block up to nine storeys high have been approved by Crawley Borough Council.
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Longley House, in East Park, which stands between the Arora Hotel and Zurich House, will be demolished to make way for the £22m development.

The application, from developer A2Dominion, which will be 100 per cent affordable, was given the thumbs-up by members of the planning committee on Tuesday night (November 3).

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Ian Irvine (Lab, Broadfield) described the site as ‘run down and a bit grotty’ and said the new homes would be ‘a huge improvement’.

Peter Smith (Lab, Ifield) agreed.

The area is listed as a key housing site in the Local Plan and Mr Smith pointed out that that Plan also said 12,000 homes needed to be built over the next 15 years.

He described the proposed building as ‘attractive’ and said it would ‘fit very well in the location’.

Looking at the height of the U-shaped building, which would step from four to seven to nine storeys, he added: “Us new towners don’t want to go up that high but we do want to provide homes for people and this seems a very good way to do it.”

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The development will be made up of 53 one-bed, 59 two-bed and nine three-bed flats, which will be a mixture of affordable rented and shared ownership.

There will be 60 parking spaces.

The new building, designed by architects Ayre Chamberlain Gaunt, will offer 61 apartments for shared ownership and a further 60 for affordable rent.

Danny Lynch, director of land and development at A2Dominion, said: “I’m delighted that we are bringing so many urgently needed affordable homes to Crawley. We have worked hard with Crawley Borough Council to develop a plan that works for the people of Crawley and the surrounding area.

“The high-quality design will improve this desirable town-centre location, that benefits from great travel links and amenities. Now that planning permission has been granted, we are looking forward to making a start at this site.

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Cllr Irvine, who is also cabinet member for housing, added: “The council welcomes the partnership working with A2Dominion to bring this site forward for much-needed affordable housing to address local housing needs.

“We are also very encouraged by the quality of the design, of what will become a landmark building in this highly visible and sustainable location, making a significant contribution towards the ongoing regeneration of Crawley’s town centre.”

Ayre Chamberlain Gaunt director, Emily Pallot added: “As well as delivering high-quality affordable homes, we wanted to design a scheme that would benefit the wider community and act as a catalyst for future development. We’ve introduced a public courtyard at the centre of the scheme and used stepped massing to invite people into the development.”