Eastside Ecohub

Community Land Trust Proposal for a sustainable housing, workspace and wildlife garden in Digbeth, Birmingham
May 2008 Introduction
We are proposing to build a small demonstration sustainable development in Digbeth, Birmingham, comprising affordable/social housing, green work spaces for environmental organisations and businesses, and wildlife garden, set up in a small-scale Community Land Trust model, and linked to neighbouring environmental community building, The Warehouse. The project has been approved as one of 11 CLT pioneers in a pilot scheme being run by Community Finance Solutions and the Housing Corporation. The vacant site neighbours The Warehouse, a long-established community building for environmental organisations and businesses, owned and run by Birmingham Friends of the Earth Ltd. Birmingham FOE is an active partner in these proposals. The two sites together could act as a much-needed meeting hub, not only for the citys environmental community of interest but as a place where Eastside residents and workers could meet and find out about local proposals and developments.

Benefits of the proposals

Develops a difficult and under-used piece of land, supporting and developing Eastside regeneration and enhancing the value of land in the area. Retains the land value increase and income from the scheme for community benefit Provides greatly needed affordable housing, including family housing, which by the CLT mechanism will be permanently retained as affordable, unlike most other schemes. Supports the citys commitments to sustainable building and decentralised energy in Eastside guidance, sustainability strategy, climate change strategy. Will provide high quality energy-efficient buildings which provide a demonstration project of national significance, help promote other highly energy-efficient schemes in Birmingham and help the City meet its ambitious carbon reduction targets. Pioneers emerging ideas of the transfer of community assets into community hands and strengthens a community resource. Supports the environmental voluntary sector in the city. Works with the physical and functional character and grain of the area; fits well with neighbouring uses and will benefit them. Conforms to good design principles outlined in both Parkinsons visioning study1 and Design and Movement Framework: dense, diverse, fine grained. Maintains biodiversity more than any other likely scheme for that site. Assists environmental innovation linked to the development of green business.

What is a Community Land Trust?

A community land trust is a method of using land for public good by locking the land value itself into a Trust for social, environmental and economic benefit. This can then make any housing or work space on the land affordable for rent or purchase, as well as of course directing the purposes for which it is used towards those endorsed by the Trusts principles. A CLT can also involve co-ownership. There

Visioning study for the Birmingham City Centre Masterplan, 2007: ..will particularly need to show how the area which has the greatest potential Digbeth will be developed in ways that capitalise upon its existing graininess and ensure that standard development does not eliminate Digbeths distinctive qualities. (paragraph 6.14)

are various models for Trust governance and legal structure most of which have a high degree of community involvement.

The site
The site is owned by Birmingham City Council, and is part of a small street block in Digbeth, bounded by Bordesley Street, Park Street, Shaws Passage, and Allison Street. It is part of the Digbeth, Deritend and Bordesley High Streets Conservation Area. The site is of complex shape and measures approximately 0.2 hectare (0.5 acre) in size. The Warehouse, Birmingham Friends of the Earths complex of two-storey buildings, occupies most of the Allison Street frontage of the block. This contains a popular vegetarian caf, wholefood shop and bicycle shop, all of which are keen to be part of a more thriving Digbeth community and will benefit from greater residential and workspace development. Adjacent to the Warehouse on Bordesley Street are some of the areas few existing houses, some designed 1882-84 by a well-known Birmingham architect Jethro Cossins, and including a hostel for homeless men, with a caf at street level. Other buildings on the block appear to be vacant, and the strip on Shaws Passage is used for pay-and-display car parking. Immediately behind The Warehouse is a fenced area of intensive plant growth, approximately 600sm in size, containing mainly buddleia, which has grown up over the last few years since the demolition of buildings there, but has become a habitat for birds and other wildlife.

Details of the scheme

The proposal is to build a development which reflects and enhances the uses, nature and scale of this part of Digbeth and its conservation area; a development which is dense, diverse and fine-grained; demonstrates sustainable building and supports wildlife; and supports Birminghams green voluntary sector. More detailed plans have been drawn up but are still flexible. The built development is currently proposed to be a mixture of approximately 18 dwellings both for rent and purchase, including 6-8 family houses, and 6 workspaces. The two can be connected in use and occupation, or kept separate. The architectural character will be chunky, urban and robust, using predominantly brick.

Housing element
There is an opportunity, which Professor Parkinson recognises and endorses, for new housing to be built in Digbeth and Deritend of a kind which is not found to any significant degree in the rest of the city centre. Specifically, it can and should be characterised by three qualities. It should: Have a greater range of tenures than the predominant spec-built owner-occupation elsewhere Contain a wider range of dwelling types, specifically high-density family houses Exhibit innovation in design in areas such as green technology We consider that the development proposed fulfils these objectives, and those of the Housing Corporations CLT project. It is aimed that the housing will be aimed at families and individuals of low or moderate income who would not otherwise be able to buy; and who are or want to be part of the existing community of Digbeth, whether related to the environmental sector, creative uses, or other long-standing elements of the area; and who want to be part of a different, more co-operative and sustainable model of housing and community.

Workspaces element
The workspace elements of the proposals will be designed for flexibility and their uses will be intended to compliment uses in the existing Birmingham FOE Warehouse, for example by providing space for green businesses or voluntary organisations, and help build a joint community of interest in the two sites. There are clearly job creation and social capital gains from this element.

Wildlife garden
The wildlife that has sprung up on some of the site is unfortunately not in any way protected in law as the site is designated for development and in for sale. We therefore believe that of the developments that could be proposed for this site, our proposals are the most likely to conserve as much of the wildlife as possible, in accordance with the Eastside Biodiversity Strategy and its parent biodiversity guidance.

Energy, resources and biodiversity

Energy generation for the site will look at opportunities to provide demonstration renewable energy provision and efficiency measures for both the Warehouse, the new build and potentially also including other neighbours on the block. The wildlife benefits of the area of the site left wild would be extended by brown roof and other wildlife measures designed into the newbuild. All opportunities will be taken in the design and construction to provide for biodiversity, the reuse of materials and resources, and the conservation of energy.

Eastside Ecohub Architects impression

CLT models
Advice and support on the Community Land Trust legal structure and organisation will be provided by the Housing Corporation/Community Finance Solutions but would be designed to represent the users, residents and participating organisations of the development.

Who we are
Partner Accord Housing Association BCHS Birmingham Friends of the Earth Joe Holyoak Architects/ Eastside Sustainability Advisory Group Land for People Localise West Midlands Area of expertise contributed Housing: social, affordable; sustainable construction Cooperative and community aspects of housing Sustainability, local knowledge, good relations with neighbours Sustainable architecture & urban design; Eastside Community Land Trusts Sustainable economics, Eastside

Next steps
We are seeking the support of the council to sell us the land at a price which reflects the number of public benefits the scheme will bring, in accordance with government principles for land disposal and new interest in community asset transfer. A bid is being prepared to a charitable funder for the post of CLT development worker, who will facilitate community involvement in the scheme including the setting up of the Community Land Trust, and then will work for the CLT in developing the scheme up to and beyond the construction stage. Accord will bid to the Housing Corporation for the housing element of the project. They would become the initial owners of the assets but would then transfer them at cost to a new CLT in which we expect the residents of the new dwellings to be part of the new legal structure. Location map

Contact details If youd like more information about these proposals, your first points of contact are: Paul di Mambro Accord 0121 500 2395 pauldm@accordha.org.uk Jon Morris Localise West Midlands 0121 706 4019 jon.214morris@btinternet.com