397 modular homes for Boots HQ site ‘welcomed’
BUT RESIDENTS LIVING NEARBY ARE ‘CONCERNED’ ABOUT INFRASTRUCTURE
NEIGHBOURS are unsure about plans to build hundreds of homes at Boots’ headquarters.
Part of the Boots site in Beeston would be transformed into 397 new modular homes if plans are given permission by Broxtowe Borough Council’s planning committee on December 7.
The proposed development is to the south-east section of the Boots campus and is bound by the Nottingham-beeston Canal to the south east, Thane Road to the north-east, Severn Trent Water sewage treatment site to the south-west, and the industrial buildings of the Boots campus to the north-west.
There have also been 207 homes approved at the other part of the site, which falls within Nottingham City Council’s boundaries, totalling 604 properties.
In the Broxtowe authority boundary, there would be 71 two-bedroom, 246 three-bedroom and 74 four-bedroom homes, as well as six bed apartments. There would be 102 shared ownership properties and 100 so-called “affordable” rent properties.
Locals welcomed housebuilding, but questioned whether the site was the ideal place for new residents to live.
Gary Bussey, 63, who works at Boots, said: “This area is very industrial really. It is on a flood plain as well, I live just nearby and we have had floods before. It’s probably a good use for the land. The only thing we’ve got out of the plans so far, which have been going on for a while, is the new link road.
“I wouldn’t want to live there myself. You can smell the pizza from the food factory over there when it’s windy.”
The application site falls within both Flood Zone 2 and Flood Zone 3, with points within the site at higher risk of flooding. According to a planning document, developer Ilke Homes has worked with the Environment Agency to ensure that occupiers and property are not at risk of flooding, with some homes built in a slightly elevated position.
Wendy Wilson, 70, from Beeston, said: “There is always a lot of water there so they would have to factor in that it floods.
“I hope they put in the infrastructure that all these homes will need.
“It’s hard to get into doctors and dentists, it is really important these needs are addressed. It will have an impact on traffic.
“We need more housing and they have to build them somewhere though. People will moan wherever they get put.”
George Bell, 26, an accountant who works in Beeston, said: “It sounds like a big project, younger people need more access to affordable housing so it could help there. I would not want to live there myself, but it is a good thing that they are looking to build new homes. The traffic is sometimes bad in Beeston but I’m sure that the impact on roads has been thought about.”
In a report submitted to Broxtowe Borough Council’s planning committee which recommended councillors approve the proposals, an officer said: “The benefits of the proposal are that the development would provide additional affordable housing, in a sustainable location, and which could contribute to the housing targets for the borough and provide a wide range of size of housing to meet the needs of the community.
“The development would see the re-use of a previously developed site and have an economic benefit to the borough.”