PLANS to create a four-bedroom HMO in Connah’s Quay to help prevent homelessness in Flintshire are facing opposition by local councillors.
D2 Propco is partnering with Flintshire County Council’s Housing and Communities department to provide emergency accommodation through Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMOs) for adults and young people at risk of homelessness to prevent them ending up on the streets.
The partnership will replace the use of expensive hotel or B&B placements and is anticipated to save the authority £3.2 million over three years.
But the latest proposal to turn a three bedroom house on Dee Road on Connah’s Quay into a four-bedroom HMO has run into opposition from local members.
Cllr Ros Mansell has submitted opposition to the plans, stating: “There are too many HMOs in Connah’s Quay.
“There are not enough parking spaces for residents in Dee Road at present which is already causing problems. Residents are having to suffer with the overwhelming number of overflowing black bins from other HMOs.
“Our area is already overcrowded, this is attracting unsociable behaviour in our community.”
Cllr Debbie Owen, deputy mayor of Flintshire County Council and vice-chair of Connah’s Quay Town Council, echoed those views.
“We have many HMOs in Connah’s Quay,” she wrote in her objection to the scheme. “This is causing social problems and issues with rubbish collections, putting greater pressure on local infrastructure, increasing noise and pollution.”
Connah’s Quay Town Council also objected to the proposal, due to ‘lack of parking, congestion and safety of children’.
In its application D2 Propco explained the support that tenants would have access to and the security measures and monitoring that are in place at its homelessness accommodation.
“D2 Propco prides itself in offering safe, high-quality housing for those in need, providing emergency and temporary accommodation support to avoid the use of bed and breakfasts and eliminate the need for people to sleep rough,” it said.
“Highly experienced house managers can liaise closely with social workers, caregivers and local authorities to ensure that vulnerable people feel safe, enabled and guided during their time in our accommodation.
“We aim to do this by providing a secure, stable and structured environment, with clear boundaries for the duration of the person’s stay.
“A dedicated team of extensively trained house managers are on-call 24/7 providing a high level of service to both local authorities and the tenants. House managers conduct daily visits to all their properties to check on tenants’ welfare and the condition of the property.
“A team of cleaning contractors weekly clean all properties. There are CCTV cameras covering all communal parts of the property and each morning these
cameras are checked by the managers. A daily report is sent to the local authority housing team to inform of activity or to raise any issues that need addressing.”
Flintshire County Council’s Planning Committee will consider the application on Wednesday.
