Woking Borough Council has approved plans to convert a almost 40-year-old office block on Church Street into 97 apartments. These ambitious plans will deliver 27 new apartments in the heart of town. At a planning committee meeting on June 3, councillors expressed concerns about the absence of social housing included in the development. As a result, the committee voted unanimously to take a bold step. Even with these concerns, the plans were approved with little discussion.
The repurposed building, formerly an office building, will maintain its existing façade. In the interim, we’ll convert that same top two floors into residential units. This redevelopment aims to contribute to the housing supply in Woking’s town centre, an area that has seen increased demand for residential accommodations. The project features the creation of 51 lined parking spaces to help accommodate the influx of new residents who will likely need cars.
Councillor Daryl Jordan had expressed deep concerns at the lack of social housing in the proposals. He remarked, “I’m fairly upset that there is no social housing, which gets dumped on other people. The [flats] are all small and there is nothing for families.” His comments get to a larger concern shared by community leaders in the region about whether the new housing choices being created will be affordable.
The committee’s hands were tied because of current law on converting offices to homes. This really constrained their capacity to place additional stipulations for affordable housing.
Chris Caulfield, a writer for the Local Democracy Reporting Service, reported on the planning committee meeting. He pointed out that change, the proposal to build more affordable housing in the district, passed with almost no dissent by the committee members present.
