£5m for new Wolverhampton council homes
Millions of pounds will be spent over the next five years building the first new council houses in Wolverhampton for three decades.
A total of £5 million is set aside. A seven-acre plot off Thompson Avenue, Ettingshall, is earmarked and other sites such as council-owned garages are being looked at.
The cash-strapped city Council has set aside funding of £1m a year until 2018. It has not yet been confirmed how many homes will be built or when building starts but funding is available from April on.
The number of council-properties has dwindled as tenants took up the right to buy their homes. Wolverhampton Homes, which manages most of the council's housing stock, has about 23,500 properties but waiting lists can have 13,000 people on them.
The last council homes built in Wolverhampton were in Pendeford in the 1980s.
Deputycouncil leader, Councillor Peter Bilson, said: "Thompson Avenue is a site that's probably as ready to go as any and is in our ownership. We're looking at a number of other smaller sites, such as former council garages, which may also be suitable for re-development.
"This will be the first new council housing in Wolverhampton for a very long time."
The funding comes despite the council drawing up £68 million of cuts over the next five years, which will result in more charges for pest control services and the frequency of cleaning in residential streets being cut from every six weeks to every 12.
