Apartments plan for former social club popular with Aston Villa fans have been approved

Proposals to build new apartments on the site of a former ‘Villa haunt’ have been given the green light.

The plans are set to see 40 ‘self-contained’ apartments built on a vacant, brownfield site in Victoria Road, Aston – just a short walk away from Villa Park.

The site used to be home to The Ruskin Hall Members Club, a social club which has since been demolished. According to a council officer’s report, there are “significant piles” of debris, including building rubble and fly-tipped waste, on the site.

A letter of support received from a representative from Victoria Road Medical Centre also noted it had reportedly become “infested with rats and mice.”

Speaking at a Birmingham City Council planning committee meeting this month, Councillor Lee Marsham welcomed the plans. “[The site] used to be a pre-match Villa haunt,” he said. “Unlike the site which is now rubble, Villa are obviously rising from the ashes and reaching the heights of Europe. Building the houses on brownfield, getting rid of an old site that’s full of rubble is a win-win,” he added.

“That particular site has been a blight on the landscape for many years now,” Cllr Diane Donaldson said. “To see this proposal for 40 self-contained apartments, it’ll bring much needed accommodation and it will lift the area so I welcome this application.”

Cllr Jane Jones agreed, saying: “It’s a tip basically, it seems pointless not just building some useful homes on there.” The council officer’s report concluded that the public benefits arising from the proposals were positive.

“Officers do not feel that the impacts of the development should tip the planning balance in favour of refusal,” it continued. “The application delivers a sustainable, high quality development that meets wider housing delivery aspirations of Birmingham.”

On affordable housing, the council officer’s report also said: “Assessment demonstrated there is a significant negative residual land value, which confirms that the scheme is unable to sustain any affordable housing or Section 106 contributions.”

However, it continued that a legal agreement is proposed which would include a ‘viability review mechanism’. This would mean the financial viability of the development would be re-assessed prior to or on occupation of a certain proportion of the residential units. The plans were approved subject to the completion of a legal agreement.