An Ashton mattress warehouse is set to be redeveloped into an apartment complex.
The renovation of the former J T Griffiths & Co Ltd property on Stockport Road will create 43 residential units. Having served as a mattress ticking warehouse from 1963 until 2013, the building stood vacant for over a decade before its recent redevelopment initiative aimed at housing vulnerable young adults with 'arms length support'.
The proposal was approved in 2023 but returned to the table at Tameside Council's latest planning panel in Droylsden due to amendments made by developers, Manson Holdings Ltd. The revised plan stipulates 15% social housing provision, significantly reduced from the originally promised 100 %.
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Addressing the panel, the developers expressed intentions to allocate all apartments for social housing if feasible, albeit now including a contingency for circumstances where collaboration with a registered housing provider falters or Homes England funding remains unsecured.
The revisited application was a bone of contention for Coun Doreen Dickinson, who told the meeting in Guardsman Tony Downes House: "Developers should really think before they come in and say 100% affordable housing.
"This was passed in 2023, and I know costs have gone up. But planning officers should have conversations with developers to make sure they absolutely can do it."
Despite some reservations, the revised plan received the green light from the panel on June 25.
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