City councillors hoping for a homes bonanza as a result of rebuilding the fire-hit Royal Clarence Hotel have had to lower their sights.
An independent assessor has decided that an initial target of £2.4million to go towards new homes in the city to be paid for by Royal Clarence developers NooKo was set too high.
Instead they will be expected to hand over a much smaller amount.
Members of the city council planning committee raised concerns over the new, lower, figure, but decided it was a price worth paying to see the site redeveloped.
At the beginning of the planning process a figure is set for the amount of affordable housing to be provided in any new development, in this case 35 per cent. However, if the affordable housing cannot be provided on site, as is the case with the Royal Clarence, the developer will be expected to pay an off-site financial contribution designed to fund affordable housing elsewhere.
It was originally set at £2.4million, but councillors heard that this was a ‘maximum’ figure.
An independent valuer, not linked to NooKo or the council, now says the true ‘viable’ figure is around £360,000, which will also include contributions for Exe Estuary habitats and GP surgeries at Barnfield Hill, Southernhay House, St Leonards Practice and St Thomas Health Centre.
The hotel site has been derelict since the fire which destroyed the original historic building in October 2016. Nooko has permission to build 25 new apartments on the site along with a pub and restaurant on the ground floor.
Many of the key features of the old building are being incorporated into the new one.
The plan was brought back before the planning committee due to the drop in the amount to be handed over for affordable homes. The meeting also heard that some work on the ‘challenging’ site had been started when it should not have been.
Work to stabilise the ruin and make it safe was authorised, but the meeting was told that some other work had also been carried out.
The extra work had not caused any harm, councillors were told, and NooKo had been asked to stop until the planning committee had made up its mind.
Cllr Mitchell said nobody wanted to hinder the ‘welcome’ development, but questioned whether the original £2.4million had been a realistic figure.
Cllr Andy Ketchin (Green, Newtown and St Leonards) said: “It doesn’t fit with the expectation we were given four years ago, but we have to be realistic about the challenges faced by developers.”
And planning committee chair Cllr Paul Knott (Lab, Exwick) added: “We have seen a potential 20 council houses reduced to one or two, but we need to pass this in order to get something built on the Royal Clarence site.”
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