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Rogers: New homes could "deliver so much"

22nd November 2005 | back to article listings BACK    print this article PRINT

A new report released today from the Urban Task Force has appealed for the government to ensure its plans to create new affordable housing do not create disfranchised and segregated ghettos.

The architect Lord Rogers, chairman of the task force, said that the government's plans to create up to 578,000 new homes across the south east by 2026 could "deliver so much" to the area and people living there. But he stopped short of completely backing the proposals, warning that "the wrong approach now could saddle generations to come with a legacy of failure". "Quantity should not be placed before quality," he said.

The hope is that when the new developments are built, they will foster a sense of community which many new developments have lacked. By being overseen by a single body like the project at Canary Wharf, says the report, local authorities can ensure that building and regeneration are focussed towards a single goal. Lord Rogers said that the inner cities must prevent themselves from becoming ghettos, which might result in such tension as that seen in France's cities over the past weeks.

Such comments will come as welcome news to investors looking at grasping the opportunities presented by the government's initiative. More inclusive neighbourhoods will mean happier residents and ensure that prices in the new areas can enjoy the same rises seen around the rest of the country in traditional areas.

But the report did single out the Thames Gateway as "failing to live up to its full potential".
"A confusing plethora of nearly 30 institutions are tasked with managing the development and regeneration process", it said, which is leading to a "fragmented urban landscape".

"A trip down the Thames reveals how we are squandering a great opportunity; small scale, low-quality, shoddily built houses stand cheek by jowl with oversized structures, with no sense of scale, design, character or continuity."

The taskforce appealed for the government to take charge of the redevelopment for the Olympic Games in 2012 to ensure similar integration and good investment for house buyers. "Plans to build new housing in the south east, demolish abandoned housing in the north and radically reshape east London for the 2012 Olympic Games are monumental opportunities," it said.

Deputy prime minister John Prescott announced earlier this year that new homes – some costing as little as £60,000 to build – would be built in earmarked areas to help people on lower incomes afford their own homes. Rising demand and house prices have left many unable to afford their own property.

This is a press release by Assetz also available at http://press.assetz.co.uk/articles/2330.html. Alternatively, please see our full press release archive.

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