MORE THAN 150 new homes have been given the green light.

Adur District Council approved the plans to redevelop the former site of Shoreham Civic Centre.

The site between Brighton Road, Eastern Avenue and Ham Road has lain empty since 2017.

A total of 159 new one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bed room homes will be built across a six-storey building and a nine-storey building.

The ground floor of both will be used for a range of commercial uses including office space, shops, a creche and a gym.

The work is subject to the signing of a legal agreement with social housing developer Hyde Housing.

Earlier plans that featured 171 homes and a 11-storey tower were withdrawn by after the intervention of the leader of the council in response to public concerns about its height.

The Argus: Earlier plans that featured 171 homes and a 11-storey tower were withdrawn by after public concerns about its height Earlier plans that featured 171 homes and a 11-storey tower were withdrawn by after public concerns about its height

The reduced height of the new scheme means that it will be lower than the Free Wharf development currently under construction nearby.

As well as reducing the height of the development, Hyde amended the scheme to reduce the amount of commercial floorspace, to provide additional parking spaces and to plant 25 trees to replace a mature poplar tree on the land.

The site is owned by the council but will be sold to Hyde Housing subject to the granting of planning permission.

Due to a shortage of affordable housing in the Arun district, in addition to normal planning requirements which require 30 per cent of homes to be affordable, Hyde has agreed that every home provided will be affordable, using funding to be made available through a partnership with Homes England.

This means that 99 properties will be shared ownership and 60 will be for social rent for Adur residents - allowing the council to help people on its housing waiting list into permanent homes.

Hyde has also confirmed that the shared ownership properties cannot be bought as second homes, and that it will market them to local residents.

Councillor Neil Parkin, the leader of Adur District Council, said: “For many people in Adur, the idea of owning your own home is just a dream because of rising property prices. For those who have to stay in emergency accommodation, just knowing they have somewhere they can call home long-term is a huge relief.

“The new homes on the civic centre site will mean a better life for hundreds of local people in both of these situations, right in the heart of a vibrant community.”