Plans to demolish retirement complex to make way for new affordable housing

A retirement housing complex in Llay could soon be demolished to make way for an affordable housing development.

Cwrt Pentwmpath, on Eighth Avenue in Llay, is owned by Wales and West Housing and is currently made up of 30 flats along with a wardens house and guest room.

However the organisation is now seeking permission from Wrexham Council to demolish the existing building and use the site for 25 “affordable residential dwellings.”

The applicants say that the scheme has “very few residents remaining on site” and the existing building “does not meet the current requirements or regulations.”

As a result a decision was made not to fill the vacant spaces as people moved away.

In plans submitted to the local authority it has been proposed that the site is used for 25 affordable homes, including 17 one bedroom apartments within a three storey building and eight one bedroom bungalows.

The properties are described by the applicants as being “100% affordable housing for social rent, identified to meet the local need.”

Further details are provided within the design and access statement, which says the “expected resident group to be accommodated in this facility will be people over the age of 55 who are relatively active and independent who may wish to downsize.”

It continues onto say “the proposal will seek to make the best use of the site in the context of the setting while creating the most flexible, accessible and inclusive living environment for residents.”

As part of the plans the existing site access will be retained, along with the current car park facilities for 26 vehicles.

Covered cycle storage will also be introduced with capacity for 14 bikes.

The applicants add: “The layout provides a semi-secure and private communal environment accessed via a single site entrance.

“The courtyard provides access to the bungalows and apartments main entrance, and is overlooked from all sides, providing natural surveillance and a sense of community.

“The proposed architectural style and selection of materials for the development is to be modern, simple and robust, yet to be in-keeping with the surrounding buildings to retain the appearance and character of the area.

“The design intent for the apartment building is for a simple, modern architectural style that has a form and uses materials that are in-keeping with the surrounding buildings.

“The internal layout of the building is a series of identical apartments, and so it was logical that the external appearance of the building expresses these regular structural bays on both principal elevations, and divides the elevations into the pattern of the stacked apartments.”

The application will be considered for approval by Wrexham Council at a later date.