Quarry Hill: Leeds Council backs plans for new 11-storey city centre building with 'affordable' rent

Developers Legal and General Affordable Homes put forward an application to Leeds City Council to build a single 11-storey apartment building in the city centre.

The site was formerly a council-run car park but now sits vacant.

The proposal includes a mix of one, two and three-bed apartments in Quarry Hill, as well as a reception, bicycle and bin store, terraces for ground floor apartments and a number of juliette balconies. All flats will have floor-to-ceiling windows.

Designed to be affordable units offering priority to people on the council’s current waiting list for social housing, the developers state that the flats will be rented out for less than the current local housing allowance levels – lower than the market rate.

One-bed apartments, with service charge included, will cost £112 per week, which is £8 lower than the current local housing allowance cap.

Initial concerns were put forward by representatives from the proposed development’s neighbouring building, Northern Ballet.

Concerns raised by the arts organisation included the building’s design and access to Northern Ballet’s own car park after the proposed development is built.

And councillors on the City Plans Panel also weighed in on the lack of child-friendly facilities and green space included in the plans.

Coun Kayleigh Brooks Deputy Executive Member (Labour), told the meeting: “I’m not convinced that any thought has been given at all to families that are going to be living in this block. How children also feel being residents of this block – and I have not heard anything to reassure me that it would be a comfortable and safe place for children to be in.”

The councillor, who represents the Little London and Woodhouse ward, where the development is proposed, added: “I am also obviously in support of a 100 per cent affordable block, socially rented as well. I know that funding from Homes England is difficult to come by and developments like this don’t come by often so I suppose that if it’s the best we can do with the funding that is available.

"I understand but I also know that people on lower incomes deserve better than not having access to green spaces and children should access to a playground nearby.”

Coun Colin Campbell (Liberal Democrats) told the meeting that, while he was in favour of the affordable housing allocation, the development was “squeezing in a lot onto the site”.

He said: “I’m in a slightly difficult position here with this one because of the principle of the developments, which would be to put a substantial number of affordable units – and we can argue about affordable, but they are actually more affordable than the stuff we pass – into the city centre, is a very positive thing that we would all support.

“The problem really is to get the affordable housing, we are squeezing in a lot onto the site, in my opinion, and that means some of the things we normally expect like softening the landscape with planting or even a sit out area doesn’t seem to be here and it strikes me that we can say ‘tough’ or ‘we can stick out’.”

There are currently no plans in place for a play area or park on this site.

Councillors said there was too much of a reliance on residents using green space in nearby developments, such as SOYO, and amenities in the city centre. Coun Campbell said having the parks nearby the property as the only green space available was “not really practical”.

Despite the concerns over a lack of child-friendly facilities and open space, councillors backed the plans to be put forward for further consultation and agreed that more affordable social housing was needed in the city centre.

The flats are also designed to be energy efficient and will have low energy costs, which developers said was due to the ongoing climate change debate and the cost of living crisis.