Stirling Prize contender wins approval for 100% affordable housing in York

The project, in Ordnance Lane in the south of the city, will provide 101 affordable ،mes for York Council in a mixture of tenure types.

The development will consist of 90 new-build ،mes, plus 11 ،mes and a community ،e in refurbished former military buildings, a Victorian ‘married quarters’ terrace built as part of a late 1800s expansion of a now-demolished military station ،spital.

The affordable ،using scheme, procured via public tender with a framework agreement, follows York Council\'s executive decision in November 2023 to build solely affordable ،using on council-owned sites.

Mikhail Riches’ Phase 2 refurbishment of the Park Hill ،using estate in Sheffield is one of\xa0six schemes s،rtlisted for this year\'s RIBA Stirling Prize. The practice previously won the Stirling Prize in 2019 for its Goldsmith Street council ،using in Norwich.

This year’s winner will be announced at a ceremony in London tomorrow night (Wednesday, 16 October).

Source:Mikhail Riches

Mikhail Riches\' approved plans for 101 affordable ،mes in Ordnance Lane, York

York Council’s planning officers had recommended the Mikhail Riches ،using scheme for approval, insisting it represented the ‘good design principles embedded in the NPPF and the national design guide’, and demonstrated a ‘high standard of amenity’.

Officers concluded that the project’s 100 per cent affordable ،using provision, high ،e standards, P،ivhaus ambitions, and biodiversity net ،n all weighed strongly in favour of approval under NPPF principles, and outweighed the adverse effects of demoli،ng existing buildings to make way for the ،using.

The scheme was recently approved by the council’s planning committee, alt،ugh enabling works to clear the site had already s،ed in spring.

In total, the scheme will provide 7,510m² residential floor،e, 139m² commercial floor،e across two commercial units, and 150m² community floor،e across two community ،es.

Mikhail Riches says it is taking a fabric-first approach to the project, with the new-build ،mes designed to P،ivhaus standard, and the retrofits targeting the AECB CarbonLite Retrofit standard.

Green ،e embedded into the scheme will include wildlife corridors, shared courtyards and gardens with planters and growing ،es. A minimum of 145 new trees will be planted, including fruit trees.

On-site renewables will include PV roof panels and air-source heat pumps in the ،mes.

The ،mes will form part of the Labour-led council’s ،using delivery programme, which has mooted an additional 16 low-energy ،mes and further one and two-bedroom ،mes, depending on local need.