YORK'S housing boom is gathering pace with planners set to approve more than 350 new apartments on the Barbican and Terry's sites.

Persimmon Homes wants to build 175 apartments on vacant land next to an aparthotel, which is already under construction on the former Barbican swimming pool and car park land.

It is also seeking permission for another 12 apartments on a separate plot of land nearby on the corner of Kent Street and Fawcett Street.

At the same time, Henry Boot Developments and PJ Livesey want to convert a former Terry's factory building into 173 apartments, with a single storey roof top extension and also a 2,500 square ft retail unit on the ground floor.

City of York Council's planning committee is being urged to grant conditional approval for all the schemes when it meets next Thursday.

A report by development management officer Jonathan Kenyon said the Barbican scheme would "regenerate a prominent brownfield site and provide much needed housing in a sustainable location."

He said the proposed four and five storey block maintained the layout which was previously approved for the site in 2007, when 240 units were proposed, but had a more residential appearance.

There would be 106 car parking spaces on the site and parking spaces would also be leased from the Q-park opposite to create a total of 155 spaces, and18 of the apartments would be affordable.

The report said only three comments from the public had been received, which raised concerns that the block would overlook a property in Barbican Road and that there would be disturbance from waste collection but also welcoming the provision of much needed housing in the city.

Simon Usher, deputy managing director at Persimmon Homes Yorkshire, said the application followed detailed discussions with the council, adding: “We are hoping for a successful outcome after receiving a positive recommendation from the council planning officers.”

Meanwhile, a report by another development management officer, Erik Matthews, has revealed that the former Terry's chocolate factory off Bishopthorpe Road is now in some 'structural disrepair' after water got into the internal fabric.

The report said original planning permission for the building had been for a mix of flexible uses but since taking over the site in 2012, Henry Boot had undertaken intensive marketing of the site for a range of uses and the only significant interest had come from residential developers.

It said the current proposal would harm the 'evidential value and significance' of the building but this was outweighed by by the benefits of bringing such a substantially important listed building back into a beneficial use.

A section 106 agreement would mean the developers providing £500,000 towards the provision of education, transport and formal open space, it added.


Fewer affordable homes at development

PLANNERS are set to approve slightly amended proposals for 87 homes on land in Huntington which will see fewer properties being affordable.

Permission was granted for the houses in 2013 and work has started on site, but a report to the planning committee said Barratt Development Ltd wanted permission to reduce the number of affordable homes from 30 to 26, a change in some house types, an increase in the number of four bedroom homes and modest changes to the layout.

The report by development management officer Michael Jones recommended councillors should approve the “relatively modest changes” to the original plans.

It said it was a “matter of regret” that the level of affordable homes was being reduced. “However, since it meets the present policy target it is not possible to object to the application on this basis.”