Residents have moved into their new homes in the latest multi-million pound Angus Council transformation of unloved local housing.
The £2 million project at Forfar’s Viewmount has seen unpopular multi-storey flats replaced with eleven new semi-detached homes in a scheme community group leaders hope will also bring some new faces on board their initiative.
The homes include secure gardens and a new parking area for 21 vehicles, and have been built using council funds and a £649,000 grant from the Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing Supply Programme.
Four of the properties are suitable for householders with disabilities and all of the homes benefit from solar panels, as well as high levels of insulation and ventilation.
Officials say those features will contribute to reducing utility costs for tenants and help meet carbon reduction targets.
The bulldozers moved in on the old flats in September 2016.
Angus communities convener, Monifeith and Sidlaws Conservative councillor Craig Fotheringham said: “It is a pleasure to see tenants settling in to their new surroundings.
“Having seen the old, unloved flats demolished, we are sure that tenants will be proud to call these splendid new houses home.
“We placed a high priority on tenant inclusion, with our communities team working closely with local residents and groups to deliver a new entrance to Reid Park and a new path from Steele Park as part of this project.
“That community engagement has continued throughout.”
Alan Watt, chairperson of community group Viewmount Voices said: “The new build is now complete and is looking good.
“Once the tenants have settled in, I will introduce myself and inform them about Viewmount Voices and we hope they will be interested in coming along.”
Communities vice-convener, Lois Speed added: “The creation of these new homes and the improvement of the open spaces around them undoubtedly enhances the Viewmount area.
“We are not only creating places that people are proud to call home – we are creating spaces where people are happy to live, work, visit and play.
“At the same time, Viewmount increases the housing choices for people with disability and who have special housing needs, which is one of the key actions in the local housing strategy.”
Features in the properties suitable for tenants with disabilities include level access entries and showers, door entry systems, adjustable kitchen worktops, widened hallways and doorways, and future-proofed ceilings that can accommodate hoists if required.
The project comprises four, three-bedroomed, two-storey semi-detached houses; four, two-bedroomed, single-storey semi-detached houses; two, three-bedroomed, two-storey terraced houses and one, two-bedroomed, two-storey terraced house.
Scott Hadden, chairman of contractors Hadden Group, said: “We are very proud of our role in delivering these new homes for Forfar in partnership with Angus Council.
“Across the project, the team has worked very hard to deliver attractive, affordable homes without compromising on a desire to create a sustainable development that is sympathetic to the surrounding area.”
