Redevelopment of Les Genats estate will completely change its “feel and landscape”

Friday 22 July 2022

The Genats Estate is in line for a major facelift after the Committee for Employment & Social Security announced a large-scale redevelopment of the largest States-owned housing estate.

The redevelopment will “completely change the make-up of the properties, design, feel and landscape of the area” said ESS.

The plan has “in-principle” support from the Policy & Resources Committee and it would be another step towards tackling the island’s affordable housing requirements.

Pictured: Les Genats Estate has 138 properties in it and a Kindred Centre for families.

ESS says the current layout of Les Genats is outdated and includes “monotonous faceless property design”.

The proposed redevelopment would break up the estate into several clos and diversify the properties, so there isn’t such a large concentration of three bed homes.

The President of ESS, Deputy Peter Roffey, said: “I am delighted that work on this incredibly important redevelopment is progressing and that we will soon have detailed plans to consider, especially as this was personally for me a priority prior to the election.”

Pictured: “I fully understand that change of this scale will cause anxiety to some existing tenants and I have written to them to promise that they will be involved throughout the process,” said Deputy Roffey. 

Deputy Roffey continued: “Ultimately Les Genats is no longer fit for purpose, its design both in terms of the layout of properties and their make-up does not best meet the island’s current affordable housing needs and there is significant potential to redevelop the site into several high-quality clos, of mixed tenures including social rental, partial ownership and key worker accommodation, for the benefit of residents. 

“This is a substantial undertaking, as the design, layout, numbers and property sizes will be entirely different to what is currently there. 

“It is an opportunity to develop an increased number of smaller properties that are desperately needed for social rental and partial ownership tenures. This is about more than just increasing the number of units on the site though, it is about enhancing the community feel of the area and better addressing the island’s affordable housing requirements now and for the future. 

“It is well-established that as a community we need fewer three-bed social rental homes and more one-bed properties.”

Plans for the redevelopment could be submitted to the Development & Planning Authority as soon as early autumn.