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\n Concerns have been raised about the number of sites being lost for purpose-built student accommodation in Birmingham.\n <\/p>\n
Members of Birmingham City Council\u2019s planning committee discussed two major proposals for large student blocks \u2013 approving one but rejecting the other.<\/p>\n
During discussions, councillors said the city was struggling with a housing crisis and questioned whether so many dedicated student homes were needed across the city.<\/p>\n
But officers said their data showed universities were continuing to grow and the demand for accommodation expected to be high in Selly Oak and Edgbaston.<\/p>\n
The committee approved the first application which proposed the demolition of Lonsdale House in Blutcher Street and replace it with a 10-storey block providing 198 bed spaces.<\/p>\n
Councillor Gareth Moore said: \u201cWe are not awash with homeless students and I do think we need to bear that in mind when it comes to determining what sites we set aside for purpose built student accommodation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat said, this is an ugly building and what is proposed is a significant improvement on that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Councillor Martin Brooks added: \u201cIt\u2019s clear there are some areas in the city, particularly around Birmingham University where there is a substantial demand for student accommodation.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut that demand is less so in some other areas including the city centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re approving many applications for one-bed rented accommodation in the city and, in all honesty, a lot of that kind of accommodation is probably really only suitable for students.\u201d<\/p>\n
Committee chairman Councillor Lee Marsham said: \u201cIf we had colleagues here from Selly Oak wards, I\u2019m sure they\u2019d tell you their dismay at the number of family homes that have been lost.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we are so desperate for family homes, it\u2019s disappointing almost an entire area of our city has become so student centralised.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a role for purpose-built student accommodation and we need to make sure we get that correct.\u201d<\/p>\n
Councillor Moore added: \u201cIn the 10 years I\u2019ve been on planning committee, Selly Oak hasn\u2019t changed despite all the purpose built student accommodation applications that have been approved.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are approving more accommodation and losing valuable sites that could be used to deliver housing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The second application discussed was for a six-storey student block in Frederick Road, which would feature 184 self-contained studios and 55 en-suite rooms.<\/p>\n
Again, Councillor Moore reiterated his concerns about losing potential housing sites for student accommodation.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cIt\u2019s in a conservation area and its disappointing this is more in keeping with that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would have been more supportive of it had it reflected the history and character of that area.\u201d<\/p>\n
Planning officers said there had been no objections received by conservation officers.<\/p>\n
But committee members voted to rejected the proposal due to the impact the new building would have on the conservation area and design of the building.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Concerns have been raised about the number of sites being lost for purpose-built student accommodation in Birmingham. Members…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":249368,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7820],"tags":[22440,22441,855,9163,22439,748,9444,1354,393,9453,4884,14987,269,12,3669,9440,93,16823,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-249367","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-birmingham","8":"tag-102-5","9":"tag-102-5-fm","10":"tag-birmingham","11":"tag-black-country","12":"tag-brierley-hill","13":"tag-britain","14":"tag-dab","15":"tag-dudley","16":"tag-england","17":"tag-fm","18":"tag-great-britain","19":"tag-halesowen","20":"tag-music","21":"tag-news","22":"tag-online","23":"tag-radio","24":"tag-sport","25":"tag-stourbridge","26":"tag-uk","27":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114820464444169944","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/249368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}