THERE is an acute housing shortage in our city.

I doubt there’s a single person in Brighton or Hove who doesn’t feel this in some form or another - whether that is a family whose children can’t afford to buy their own place, the person who is moving to Worthing for cheaper rent or the household bombarded by estate agent leaflets telling them someone wants to purchase their property today.

The council’s solution has been the creation of the City Plan which sets a housing provision target of 13,200 new homes over the plan period 2010 – 2030. 59 housing sites have been identified which will be on brownfield and ‘urban fringe’ sites.

We’re a compact, crowded city hemmed in by the sea and the South Downs so the building of large-scale housing projects is problematic.

When I was elected in 2015 I spoke about this in my maiden speech - we need a conversation about how we provide local families with affordable housing and posed the question: do we need to stem the flow of people moving to us from London?

It’s often controversial to build on the urban fringe as these are more likely to be sites with wildlife and open space for dog walkers along with settled communities who will suddenly find themselves impacted by bulldozers, construction traffic and new housing blocking their previously open views.

So I’m hugely in favour of building on brownfield sites and getting as much out of them as we can.

Brownfield sites tend to be sites that have been built on before and are often derelict or disused.

One such site in my constituency is the Sackville Industrial Estate.

Located in a central area, near Hove train station. No one can visit the site today and say it doesn’t need developing.

It is so run down and derelict that it is crying out for homes to be built on it.

That’s why I’m backing the build-to-rent plan which the council will consider passing in March.

The Moda development will deliver 20 per cent of Hove’s five-year housing supply (564 new homes for rent and 260 homes for later living) providing accommodation for 1,884 residents.

I like the development because Moda are not a developer who will build, take a profit and run.

They will remain the landlord of the tenants there and invest in the long term future of the site.

What they offer is something different to the often cut-throat private rented sector: their concept takes a longer-term view, with no deposits or fees, long-term secure, family-friendly tenancies of up to three years and no service charges.

The development is intergenerational and will appeal to both small and large households of individuals - or families - as well as older members of the community.

The project will create amenities that the whole community can benefit from including a village hall, swimming pool, library, community meeting rooms, co-working spaces and a health and wellbeing centre.

Yes, in an ideal world the council would buy the site and build 2,000 new council homes.

This would absolutely be my first choice by a country mile.

However, as the council are unable to do this I am keen to ensure that Hove gets the very best deal and a development which will not be snapped up by foreign investors like the Brighton Marina project.

Parking and car pollution at the site is obviously a major concern, and I share local resident’s concerns that we need to ensure that the area is not swamped with additional cars that the area simply cannot cope with.

So I’m pleased that the development will operate a car club and bike scheme rather that allow residents to own a car on site.

The only cars on site will be visitor’s permits.

I’ve met many constituents about this issue and I hope that this is a solution which suits everyone.

With buses and Hove train station a stone’s throw away I hope the development can become a truly car-free option for residents.

I hope that Hove can reap the benefits from this style of housing to help home more local families and to help ease the pressures of building on the urban fringe.