Under the grand vision of urban regeneration company Catalyst Corby, 28,000 homes will be built and most of the existing stock refurbished in the kind of regeneration project the government is hoping will become familiar in high-demand areas.
Corby, which is in one of the housing growth areas outlined by the deputy prime minister after last year's comprehensive spending review, is also to have a new town centre and an improved transport system, including a 60-minute rail service to London St Pancras.
The ultimate aims are to double Corby's population to 100,000 within 20 years and to kick-start the local economy with the introduction of new leisure and retail space.
No contracts have yet been signed, as the work, by consultant architect EDAW, is only at the formative stage. Further details will be ironed out after the announcement of the Communities Plan on Wednesday.
Bob Lane, chief executive of Catalyst Corby, said: "It's a regeneration framework and is a creative long-term vision for the area. Of the £4bn, the vast majority – roughly £3bn – will be private housebuilding. Only a small proportion will be required from the public purse."
Corby has a high proportion of social housing – about seven out of 10 households pay the lowest band of council tax. The stock is either owned by the council or tenants who have exercised their right to buy.
In order to create a "balanced housing market", hardly any new social housing is planned, although much of the present stock will be refurbished. Much of it is more than 50 years old and badly in need of updating.
Lane said he hoped to have the construction work on site by 2005. He denied that the slow-moving planning system meant this date was over-optimistic, saying the proposal was "ambitious but realistic" and should have been addressed by the end of this year through negotiations with local authorities.
Catalyst Corby said existing sites in and around Corby would yield more than 4000 new homes. The remainder, around 465 ha, will be found in the surrounding area.
Lane said the production of the plan and the establishment of an urban regeneration company put the Milton Keynes/South Midlands housing growth area "in a much better position than the other three areas as we have a mechanism in place to build the houses needed".
Of the four areas – the others are Thames Gateway, Ashford in Kent and Stansted/Cambridge – the South Midlands is the only one making use of a URC.
Source
Housing Today
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