Issue - meetings

This report presents the results of further research on the Affordable Housing Viability Study considered at the Executive meeting on 5 October 2010 and recommends that Members approve the Viability Study as a means of negotiating lower affordable housing targets.

Note: A revised version of the above report was published with this agenda on 9 December 2010.

RESOLVED: That the Viability Study and its (current) 25% brownfield and 35% Greenfield affordable housing targets, as set out in Table 1 in the report, be approved for development control purposes, including a lowering of the targets by a further 3.5% if a 25% developer profit can be justified, or a lower target by individual negotiation following a site-specific viability appraisal.

REASON:      So that the Affordable Housing Viability Study can be used as part of the Local Development Framework evidence base, avoiding delays to the production of the Core Strategy, and for Development Control purposes as a material consideration to assist in the delivery of affordable housing in York now.

Members considered a report which presented the results of further research on the Affordable Housing Viability Study brought to the Executive meeting on 5 October 2010 and sought approval for the Viability Study as a means of negotiating lower affordable housing targets.  It was noted that the report originally published with the agenda was a draft version; the correct version had been published and circulated on 9 December 2010.  A supplementary note had also been circulated to Members before the meeting (this has now been published on the Council’s website as Annex 3 to the report).

Since 5 October, agreement had been reached on many assumptions within the Study, but unresolved differences remained on the treatment of land values and developer profits.  Results of the research, with Officer comments and recommendations as to whether each assumption should be changed or retained, were set out in Annex 1 to the report. 

Re-running of the recommended revised assumptions produced an amended target of 35% affordable on greenfield sites, but no effect on the brownfield sites target of 25%.  There was an additional opportunity to reduce these targets to 21.5% and 31.5% respectively if a minimum 25% developer profit were required to unlock finance.  As this was an area of contention, it was recommended that the onus be placed on developers to prove that nothing less than 25% would be accepted on individual sites, for lending reasons.

Having noted the comments of the Labour Group Spokespersons on this item and the comments made under Public Participation, it was

RESOLVED: That the Viability Study, in so far as it addresses sites of 15 or more homes, and its (current) 25% brownfield and 35% Greenfield affordable housing targets, as set out in Table 1 in the report, be approved for development control purposes, including a lowering of the targets by a further 3.5% if a 25% developer profit can be justified, or a lower target by individual negotiation following a site-specific viability appraisal.  At the discretion of the Director of City Strategy, the Council may accept off-site homes and/or commuted payments in lieu of on-site affordable housing provision.”.¹

REASON:      So that the Affordable Housing Viability Study can be used as part of the Local Development Framework evidence base, avoiding delays to the production of the Core Strategy, and for Development Control purposes as a material consideration to assist in the delivery of affordable housing in York now.