Plans have been approved for 799 homes to be built in Chesser, Edinburgh on the current World of Football venue.
The project will include 100 affordable homes, 293 built-to-rent homes, and 406 PBSA (Purpose Built Student Accommodation) rooms, with a completion target of 2029.
Watkin Jones, the developer of the project, say that this development is crucial in combatting the ongoing housing crisis, with the Edinburgh Local Development Plan calling for more than 36,750 homes over the next decade.
The project will also aim to use local providers and create highly sustainable homes.
An Edinburgh City Council review in September found that the increase in student numbers had not been matched by the increase in student accommodation in the city, so the development aims to combat this.
However, students are questioning the effectiveness of the new housing development for the student housing crisis.
One third year student told The Student:
“The issue with PBSA is that the prices are usually far too high for students. They are also targeted at freshers, who are the least likely to struggle to find accommodation, as it is guaranteed for most by the University of Edinburgh.”
One local student said: “It seems counterproductive to take away an important sports venue to provide more housing, especially when the housing is for students who are already disliked by many Edinburgh locals.”
Another student commented:
“The location of the new student accommodation doesn’t make any sense for University of Edinburgh students. There aren’t really any bus links between Chesser and university campuses.”
“3rd generation synthetic grass 5-a-side football” by Soft Surfaces Ltd is licensed under CC BY 2.0.