DEVELOPERS in rural west Edinburgh are to be forced to build more affordable homes by the city council.
The council was the first local authority in Scotland to stipulate how many properties must be low-cost or socially rented houses, but the rules have always been less stringent in places such as Newbridge, Kirkliston, Ratho and Ratho Station.
With
plans for hundreds of new homes in the area, the affordable housing quota is now set to rise from 15 per cent to 25 per cent – in line with that in the rest of the Capital.
Council leaders today said the measure is necessary to tackle Edinburgh's massive housing crisis, especially in the current economic climate.
But property experts warned that developers, who are already resentful about the policy, will be put off by the rising "tax" on land.
Affordable housing is defined as housing that is available for rent or sale to meet the needs of people who cannot afford to buy or rent on the open market.
Councillor Norman Work, the city's deputy housing leader and ward member for Almond, said: "This increase from 15 per cent to 25 per cent for the affordable housing quota in rural west Edinburgh is something which I have campaigned for for some time.
"I'm determined that this change should now be set in stone, as it will bring this area in line with the rest of Edinburgh.
"There is an ongoing acute shortage of affordable housing right across the city, so anything we can do to help deliver more badly needed homes is extremely welcome."
Senior councillors believe there is enough land in the city to solve Edinburgh's housing crisis.
They want the Scottish Government to provide enough money for registered social landlords and public bodies to provide the necessary 6677 homes. The affordable housing quota applies to all developments of more than 12 units.
There are several developments in the pipeline for rural west Edinburgh, including Sir David Murray's plan to nearly double the size of Ratho Station by building 200 new homes. The council is set to remove this land from the green belt to allow the scheme to go ahead.
Developer CALA Homes has drawn up a £50 million project for the nearby village of Ratho, including 118 family homes, a new 60-bed private care home and a canal basin.
There are also proposals to build 650 new homes at West Craigs.
The site of the former Continental Tyres factory in Newbridge is also being earmarked for housing-led regeneration in the village.
But Roy Durie, senior partner with Ryden property consultants, said the changes to the affordable housing quota could delay developments.
"This is a barrier to development," he said.
"It's absolutely the wrong time to be increasing the quota. They should be reversing it, down to around ten per cent.
"It's effectively increasing the tax by 67 per cent on landowners."
The full article contains 494 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
