Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Lapdancing club demolished to make way for affordable homes
Local people to be given priority in 20-flat shared-ownership development
A former lapdancing club in the city centre has been demolished to make way for 20 flats.
The West Kent Housing Association has taken on the former Bing site in Dover Street, saying it will provide much-needed affordable homes for local people.
Two blocks, designed by awardwinning architect Guy Hollaway, are now being built, providing one and two-bedroom apartments – many of them available as shared ownership.
Under that scheme, buyers will own a share of the flats and rent the rest from West Kent, with the option to buy a bigger stake at a later date, helping them into home ownership in manageable stages.
Construction is scheduled for completion by spring next year, with the flats available through the Help to Buy scheme and priority given to prospective buyers with a local connection.
West Kent development manager Kitty Mortimer said: “The association has ambitious plans to build new homes to meet housing need in Kent and Medway, and we’re looking for more land to develop.
“The Dover Street development will be in keeping with its surroundings and provide muchneeded affordable housing right in the heart of Canterbury.”
With the building now raised to the ground, Bing owners Ralph and Alastair Noel have put their search for a new home on the “back burner” while they concentrate on other projects.
The father-and-son duo opened the club amid much controversy in the autumn of 2013, with neighbours complaining that the business was unsuitable for the area.
After two years of trouble-free trading, they closed the club after the lease on the building ran out.
More information about the Dover Street development will be published at www.westkent. org in the near future, but anyone interested can email sales@ wkha.org.uk.