Council chiefs snap up 109 new flats

Ashford Borough Council is set to snap up 109 town centre flats in a deal worth more than £18 million.

The authority is to buy the New Quarter next to the landmark nine-storey Panorama building.

Bosses say their £18.5m investment is the “largest ever” purchase of council housing to date.

A total of 109 units of one and two-bedroom flats are set to feature in the new build.

Work on the west wing, with 44 flats, is due to be completed this autumn, with the larger east wing - of 65 homes - expected by early 2021.

In what the council has called a “ground-breaking initiative”, first priority for the flats will be given to key workers.

A council spokesman says the aim is to provide “affordable rented accommodation to key workers that have an identified housing need”.

Cllr Bill Barrett, ABC’s portfo

lio holder for housing, said: “As an authority, we have funded the construction of a town centre cinema and we are now investing in residential accommodation also in our town centre.

“We have a real stake in our town centre and a vested interest in making it a vibrant place, one in which we create opportunities for those who work here to feel part of something special.”

ABC leader Cllr Gerry Clarkson said: “This acquisition rep

resents the largest handover of general needs accommodation to be managed on one site by the council.

“In today’s climate, such a transaction makes a major announcement about our commitment to affordable housing.

“Ashford continues to lead the way in housing development in Kent.”

In July, the Panorama itself - previously known as Charter House - was snapped up by an Israeli investor for £14 million.

ABC is spending £18m on the New Quarter development