Plans in for 91 homes at Fontaine Vinery to help tackle housing crisis

Thursday 26 May 2022

The Guernsey Housing Association has submitted a planning application for 91 new homes on land at Fontaine Vinery which is owned by the States.

The development aims to house single people, couples and families. Plans provide for 50% of the homes to be one-bedroom apartments, 30% to be two-bedroom houses, 20% to be three-bedroom houses with three of the houses having four bedrooms.

The States say the development will help to address the pressing need to supply more homes to the many groups of people in the island requiring accommodation, such as key workers for the island’s health services.

The application has been submitted to the States' Development & Planning Authority and will be published by the Planning Service soon.

If approved by the end of 2022, construction could start in spring 2023 with the first homes being finished by the summer of 2024. The development would be finished and occupied in phases.

Pictured: The vinery site will house 91 new homes if the Development & Planning Authority approves the application.  

Plans include establishing a bus route through the site for buses to return to the east coast and onwards to St. Peter Port or The Bridge. There would also be a new cycleway and footpath linking Le Murier to the site and out onto Victoria Avenue. 

These aspects of the development would aim to promote cycling, walking and bus use rather than car use.

The Guernsey Housing Association is also keen to encourage car sharing, partly through an app which would allow people to hire a car for a short period without them feeling the need to buy a car. This type of app is used successfully in other jurisdictions and can reduce the number of cars parked on valuable land. 

The design at Fontaine Vinery is for a mix of two-storey houses and three-storey one-bedroom apartments to provide variation and make best use of the land. 

A local tender process will start soon for the construction phase.

But the States say they are not disclosing estimated costs of the development because of commercial sensitivity. 

Pictured: Steve Williams, Chief Executive of the Guernsey Housing Association.

Steve Williams, Chief Executive of the Guernsey Housing Association, said: "After an extensive design process, we are delighted that our architects, Create, have submitted the planning application, and we can make real progress towards meeting the housing needs of people in the island who cannot afford or find suitable accommodation."

Deputy Peter Roffey, President of the Committee for Employment & Social Security, which is responsible for social housing, said: "I'm really excited by the plans for this site which place a real focus on improved travel options and amenity value for future residents, as well as making significant inroads into meeting the island’s affordable housing requirements."

Pictured: The proposed layout of the vinery site. Credit: Create.