The final site in the Raploch Regeneration Initiative programme will provide a further 68 new homes.
Stirling Council will deliver 32 affordable homes along with Robertson Partnership Homes, while Forth Housing Association will develop a further 36 homes at the former Gowanhill Gardens site which was demolished around 2007.
The houses will be built as part of the council’s Strategic Housing Investment Plan (SHIP).
Work on the 68 new homes, which will be part of a wider development that on completion will create a new neighbourhood in Raploch, will begin later this year.
The new council homes will be available for social rent, and will be amongst the most energy efficient houses in Stirling, featuring solar panels and solar battery storage with an A-rated Energy Performance Certificate.
The housing includes: one-bedroom cottage flats (six homes); one-bedroom cottage flats with wet floor shower rooms (two homes); 16 two-bed cottage flats (three with wet floor shower room); six three-bed semi-detached five-person homes; and two three-bed semi-detached six-person homes.
At a recent meeting of the council’s environment and housing committee, convener Councillor Jim Thomson said the site was one of those he never thought would be developed, adding: “It’s one of the most difficult in the whole regeneration.”
Tory councillor Martin Earl added said he was “very pleased” to see the site being developed.
“It’s not been easy but it’s a testament to the officers that we have got there. It’s fantastic.”
Councillor Earl asked, however, why more homes had not been built with a wet floor shower.
He added: “There’s probably an extra cost to a wet floor shower but it will be an extra cost if we have to install one where there isn’t one in place.”
Head of housing Stephen Clark said the majority of ground-floor flats would have one but first floors would be less suitable.
Housing officials said: “We decided that the best way forward was to take a split of the ground-floor flats and that approximately half would go forward as wet floor. We don’t know at the development stage who these flats would be allocated to so it was felt if we had a mix it would be for a range of abilities.
“We thought would be better to have some than none but didn’t go the full way so could continue to cater for a range of needs.”
Councillor Earl said that if the facilities were on the ground floor the service “should surely thinking of defaulting to just installing them because even people who may not need them now but may do in future - I don’t see why we can’t have a policy where they are just built in as standard”.
Mr Clark said he took the point on board and would be happy to review the decision.
