A new build council housing development has broken ground at Berwick Street, Coatbridge.
The Cruden Building site should deliver a mix of 19 new and affordable family homes, including three wheelchair-suitable properties.
It is the latest project getting underway as part of North Lanarkshire Council's new supply programme, which is aiming to build 5,000 new homes by 2035. So far, 970 new build homes have been delivered across North Lanarkshire and construction is underway at nine sites.
A sod cutting took place to mark the new development with housing convener, councillor Heather Brannan-McVey, cutting the first sod. He was joined by local councillors Geraldine Woods and Andrew Bustard and officers and representatives from Cruden Building and North Lanarkshire Council.
Brannan-Mcvey said: “Improving the lives of our residents and transforming local communities are at the heart of our housing plans and we’re delivering first-class homes meeting needs now and for generations to come.”
Gordon Lee, partnering and procurement director at Cruden Building, said: “We feel it is vitally important that we give back something to the communities that we work in and this development will not only provide homes for individuals and families to enjoy, but it will also bring a number of benefits to the local economy through the creation of job opportunities, an apprenticeship, work placement opportunities and career events.”
The £4.1m project is being delivered by Cruden Building and is supported by a contribution from the Scottish Government.
Meanwhile, the public are to be given the chance to view initial proposals by Cruden Homes for the delivery of 76 homes for social rent, on the site of the former Howdenburn Primary School on Howdenburn Drive in Jedburgh.
The school, which was built in 1970, was closed in 2020 and subsequently demolished, with pupils transferring to Jedburgh Grammar Campus at Hartrigge Park.
In addition to the new homes, the 5.57-acre site will also include associated infrastructure such as roads, footpaths, a sustainable urban drainage system and open space.
A consultation event will take place on 18 January at Jedburgh Town Hall, with the public given the chance to view proposals, ask questions and provide feedback.
A second consultation event, which will incorporate appropriate feedback, will take place on 22 February, also at Jedburgh Town Hall.
If approved, the two, three and four-bedroom homes will be constructed for Borders-based Eildon Housing Association.
The site is within the Jedburgh Development Boundary and is identified as a regeneration site within the Main Issues Report, which is the forerunner to the Scottish Borders Local Development Plan 2; replacing the Scottish Borders Local Development Plan 2016.
Cruden has worked with Eildon on the delivery of many new homes in the Borders, including in Newtown St Boswells, Galashiels and Earlston. This was undertaken as part of an agreement between the housing association and Cruden Building - then Hart Builders - signed in 2017, to deliver at least 342 new homes for social rent, across eight sites in the Borders.
Rory Stephens, a senior land and development manager from Cruden Homes, said: “We are delighted to be bringing forward our proposals for these much-needed affordable homes for Eildon Housing Association for public consultation.
“The local community will have the chance to ask questions and provide feedback, which will play a part in shaping our scheme as we progress it.”
Nile Istephan, Eildon's chief executive, added: “These new homes are part of our strategy to invest £137m in new homes for the Borders economy between now and 2027.”
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