NEARLY £1,000,000 has been set aside to build 14 new and affordable homes in Kendal – completely redeveloping a hotspot for anti-social behaviour.

South Lakeland District Council’s cabinet approved the £968,905 grant to help a local housing association start work on the Waterside Estate at Dowker’s Lane.

The development, undertaken by South Lakes Housing, is set to begin in April and will see the construction of ten houses and four apartments, as well as the demolition of garages and storage sheds, new bin stores and replacement sheds.

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Environmental improvements will be made to the existing estate, such as the inclusion of new paths.

The predicted cost of the development increased by £271,905 due to ‘risks around ground conditions and the complexity of the site’, which meant South Lakes Housing needed to seek help from the council to foot the bill.

The total estimated cost of the development is £2,528,905.

The housing association has seen its long-term business plan ripped to shreds following changes made to the Government’s Right to Buy Scheme, which has forced SLH to reduce their rents by one per cent every year – meaning it could contribute £199,000 less to the development than first planned.

Cllr Peter Thornton, leader of the council, said: “I’m going to make it absolutely clear that this council is totally committed to having the right amount of social housing in South Lakeland so our lower wage workers have somewhere to live.

“Fourteen families will be able to live in the middle of Kendal and that’s hugely important. Wherever possible we have to put housing in the middle of our towns.

“This is a really important scheme and hopefully the first of many.”

Kendal Mayor and SLDC cabinet member Chris Hogg said: “It’s an area that’s much in need of investment. It’s a large amount of money, but it’s going to deliver not just houses but overall development of the area.”

Cllr John Holmes is the Conservative councillor for the Lyth Valley, as well as being chairman of South Lakes Housing.

He told The Gazette: “The development will upgrade the area environmentally. It could reduce the anti-social behaviour problem there.

“It will have more open spaces, rather than clusters of garages and it will be a much more pleasant area for people to walk through and live in.

“It could also provide much-needed accommodation for older people currently living in rural areas who are finding it difficult to get around and access services.”