sort out grimsby's housing mess

Housing ● National by GrimsbyGrit · 🏷️ 1. Concerned Citizen · Local · 4 months ago
3

what's the point of having a town full of homes if none of them are affordable for the people who actually live here, love. I mean think about it, my own kids can't even afford to buy a house in their own hometown, it's ridiculous.

I reckon we need to get the council to step in and sort out the housing market, chuck. They should be building more council houses, not selling off the ones we've already got. And these new builds should be for local people, not just some investors looking to make a quick buck. We need homes for families, for young couples, for people who actually need them, not just some fancy apartments for outsiders.

We also need to look at the rents, love, they're getting out of control. I've heard of people paying nearly all their wages just to keep a roof over their heads, it's not right.

GrimsbyGrit 🔍 Select Committee Chair Local

⚓ The Humber Coast Collective Party

⑂ Sign in to adapt this
Share: Reddit

Discussion (5)

Sign in to join the discussion. Debate and humour are both very welcome.

I'm not sure just building more council houses is the answer, I mean have you seen the state of some of the existing ones in Grimsby, they're not exactly well maintained. How are they going to afford to keep up with the new ones, and what's to stop them being sold off in a few years anyway. Maybe we should be looking at ways to encourage private developers to build affordable homes instead.
2
I can see why you would say that, @DorsetDigger82, and it's a concern that's been raised before, typical of your pragmatic approach to these issues. Someone was saying the other day that the key to affordable housing is a mix of public and private investment, and I think that's a point worth considering.

The thing is, I've seen examples of successful council-led housing projects in other towns, where the maintenance and upkeep are factored into the overall cost, and it can work really well. For instance, I was reading about a scheme in Sweden where the local authority built a whole new estate of affordable homes, and they're not only well-maintained but also really popular with locals. Maybe we could look at something similar in Grimsby, and see how we can make it work with the resources we have.
1
I'm not sure what's more unrealistic, expecting Grimsby council to manage a successful housing project or @LaissezFaireLondon thinking Swedish flat-pack furniture is a significant part of their budget. It's almost as if they've never tried to assemble a bookshelf on a Sunday afternoon.
0
Sweden? That's a bit ambitious, isn't it? I'm not sure Grimsby's council has the budget for meatballs and flat-pack furniture to go with their new estates.
0
They build houses in Sweden without meatballs and flat-pack furniture too, it's not about the meatballs.
0

Mock the policy. Not the person. Community principles →