Thanks to a funding boost, Edinburgh looks set for the development of 130 new affordable net zero homes.
With the City of Edinburgh Council leading the project, the Greendykes area of Scotland’s capital will be the beneficiary of these new homes, as the boost on funding will allow the council to clean the site of any contamination and improve ground conditions in preparation for the development.
City of Edinburgh Council’s Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener, Councillor Jane Meagher, said:
“Never has our needs for better housing been greater as we face a cost-of-living crisis and a climate emergency, so we need to be really ambitious and use the small amount of space we have in our city creatively.
For years, developers have overlooked this empty piece of land because of how complex it is to unlock. Yet it’s situated minutes away from the Innocent Railway cycle path and is close to the Royal Infirmary and local employment. The area benefits from countless bus links into the city centre and it is a fantastic place to live.
I’m thrilled that we’re going to be able to but the green back into Greendykes and we’ll work with local residents as we create these new net zero carbon homes. The funding will help us to transform the land and the local government, while also providing new affordable and efficient places for people to live in line with our major housebuilding strategy.”
The project has already been granted planning permission in principle, as part of an existing masterplan for the area and, in the coming months, local people will be consulted with respect to home design.
It is anticipated that the first properties will be delivered in phases from early 2024 to the middle of 2025, subject to ground works.
