Maidstone council has approved plans to redevelop an ex-Royal Mail Sorting Office site at Maidstone East for mixed-use but predominantly residential development.

The development will include 180 flats, 1,863 square metres of commercial and/or community space and an acre of park owned and managed by the council.

Stuart Jeffery, Leader of Maidstone council, says: “This redevelopment will form part of the ambitious housebuilding programme … We believe the project will be transformational to that area of Maidstone, bringing genuinely excellent new homes to the town centre.”

Maidstone council has been working on the makeup of the site for the past few years, the demolition of the various buildings is almost complete making way for the new development.

The council will be acting as lead developer on the site and has already secured £2.1m of Brownfield Land Release Fund monies from the Department for Local Government Homes & Communities, which has helped fund some of the remedial works to prepare it for redevelopment. 

The council will now approach Homes England as to the availability of Social Housing Grant monies tofund affordable housing on the site.

The next steps are to procure a contractor for the works, and to refine and finalise the tenure mix, with a view to the build getting under way in around twelve months.