A proposal on the potential purchase of 21 homes in Rottingdean to provide more council housing will be considered at the Cabinet meeting on 18 July.
The recommendation is for councillors to authorise an offer to buy the homes – a mix of flats and family houses on part of the former St Aubyn’s School site.
The homes were built by a private developer, as part of the affordable housing element of a development on the school site, but have not been occupied.
A report to the Cabinet meeting says the developer approached the council about a possible purchase of the properties in Nicolson Place and Vaughan Williams Way.
If a purchase goes ahead, the homes will be used for people on the city’s housing register. The homes include 4 fully adapted wheelchair accessible flats.
Some of the properties could also be let to existing council tenants looking to downsize, helping to free up large family homes for others.
Increasing the supply of housing in the city is a priority for the council and the proposal is part of a range of measures to provide more council homes.
A separate report to the Cabinet meeting will provide an update on our New Homes for Neighbourhoods programme building new council-rented homes.
If agreed, 3 schemes providing a total of 67 extra council homes in Hollingbury, Portslade and Moulsecoomb will move ahead.
The schemes already have planning permission and are as follows:
Councillor Gill Williams, Cabinet Member for Housing and New Homes, said: “We are facing a housing crisis in the city and we are being proactive in our approach to secure more council housing.
“The proposed purchase of the homes in Rottingdean could provide a significant boost of 21 good quality properties, meeting a range of needs from 3 bedroom family houses to one bedroom flats.
“Our New Homes for Neighbourhoods building programme continues to provide more much needed new council homes, 269 new homes have been built since it started in 2013 and more are in the pipeline.
“We’ve also seen the completion this year of a Homes for Brighton & Hove development at Denman Place in Coldean, delivering 242 low-cost homes, including 127 council-rented homes.
“And we are continuing to buy back council homes lost under the Right to Buy through our Home Purchase Policy.”
