THE long-awaited development of the Ruskin Square site next to East Croydon Station is a step closer this week.
Site owners Stanhope/Schroders announced on Monday that the first residential phase of their overall home and offices development had been granted delegated planning permission by Croydon Council planning officers.
The scheme will provide a total of 161 new apartments, ranging from one-bedroom apartments for two people to two-bedroom flats for four people.
The building will vary between 9 and 22 storeys in height, and the development also includes a roof garden and private communal space.
Stanhope/Schroders, working as the Croydon Gateway Ltd Partnership, will be partnering the property development and management company, Places for People, on the scheme.
The development will offer a range of homes for sale, rent and part ownership.
Places for People will be managing the development and will also be responsible for the scheme's 34 affordable homes.
Ian Mason, fund director at Schroders, said: "We are delighted the first phase of housing at Ruskin Square has been approved. We expect to be on site shortly to commence preparatory works.
"We want to ensure that there is animation and activity on this important site, together with the new bridge at East Croydon Station, so that Ruskin Square fulfils its role as Croydon's gateway.
"With other positive developments in planning and development in the town, this is great news for the regeneration of Croydon."
Ruskin Square recently received a £3.7million loan from the Government-backed Get Britain Building fund, which is designed to help kick-start housing schemes which may have stalled.
Under the terms of the loans, work on the scheme must be judged to have started by the end of this month and be completed by the end of March 2015.
