Affordable apartments near completion in Bristol's Bedminster
A former warehouse and office building in Bristol is being redeveloped into a new 100% affordable housing scheme, with developers expecting to welcome in new residents by the end of the year.
Developments Bristol, supported by specialist lender Shawbrook, is behind the new Crown Apartments scheme on Leicester Street in Bedminster, which will bring 26 new affordable properties to the city.
The site will offer 17 one-bed apartments and nine two-bed units, which will be taken on by Housing Association Bromford.
Residents will be living in a highly sustainable local centre location within South Bristol, a five-minute walk from Bedminster train station and close all the available amenities. The scheme backs onto East Street – a retail centre subject to an ongoing £10 million regeneration plan as part of the wider Bedminster Green redevelopment.
The building, which began redevelopment works in July 2021, was previously occupied by industrial services firm GPS Group.
Shawbrook provided a £4 million development finance loan to support Developments Bristol with the land purchase and build costs.
Crown Apartments will make a small, but not insignificant, contribution to Bristol’s much needed supply of affordable housing particularly in the south of the City which is an area of particular need.
Adam added:
"The redevelopment of an outdated, office and commercial set of buildings into high-quality affordable living spaces is vital as local authorities strive to meet their housing targets and we are only too pleased to have facilitated this.”
“Residents will enjoy an accessible home in an exciting part of Bristol. They will be a stone’s-throw away from local shopping amenities and transport links, with the East Street area already undergoing major investment in the years to come under new regeneration plans.
“Shawbrook has demonstrated an excellent understanding of the local market, with the finance integral in allowing us to deliver this scheme to the local community.”
John Hughes, Senior Relationship Director for Development Finance at Shawbrook said:
“The average cost of a home in Bristol was more than £360,000 last year, with that figure likely to be far higher now with no signs of the market cooling down post-pandemic.
“The availability of development finance will be important to help developers in getting affordable housing schemes get off the ground – from redevelopment works to new build projects. Collectively, smaller projects will have a big impact on tackling rising housing prices.
“Adam and the team at Developments Bristol have a track record of creating high-quality homes in the Bristol area, obtaining planning permission for 56 new build homes on Luckwell Road in 2019, making a clear case to support the Crown Apartments project delivering accessible homes to the community.”
The South West was the strongest region for Shawbrook in the 12 months to March 2022, providing funding for 27 schemes to build 397 new homes. Projects in the region accounted for nearly a fifth of all new development finance facilities provided by Shawbrook UK-wide.
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