TIME and again we have written about York's housing crisis and one innovative solution comes from Yorspace, a group that aims to help people find a way onto the housing ladder by developing intermediate affordable housing along co housing principles.
Their sights are set firmly on Oliver House, in Bishophill that developers want to demolish to make way for new apartments. However, YorSpace has other plans and what should have been a straightforward bidding war has been turned into an open debate, sparked by YorSpace, that we should instead be looking for a new kind of communal living.
Their plan is to buy and refurbish the existing building and turn it into 12 homes with affordable rents and a mutual homeownership model.
Now, it seems, YorSpace might be edging ahead in the battle, with council leader Daffyd Williams deferring the decision on the disposal of Oliver House to cabinet, after listening to the arguments put forward.
Perhaps it also signals a willingness to encourage a wider discussion on how best to solve York's housing needs.
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