Hull City Council has moved a step closer to tackling problems arising from houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) across the city.
The council’s Cabinet today supported a plan that would give the authority greater control over the creation of HMOs in three areas.
The Article 4 directions would cover three areas of the city – Holderness Road, Newington and St Andrews and an area covering parts of Spring Bank and Beverley Road.
It would require planning applications to be submitted before houses can be converted to allow use by three to six people who are not living as a family unit.
While HMOs make a valuable contribution to the supply of housing, areas with a concentration of HMOs see above average levels of anti-social behaviour, noise and disturbance, plus other impacts on the environment including waste and parking pressures.
Councillor Daren Hale, Deputy Leader of Hull City Council, said: “The council has been monitoring the growth of HMOs across the city.
“Given this growth, particularly along Holderness Road, Spring Bank, Beverley Road and Newington and St Andrews, it has become necessary to remove permitted development rights to enable the council to manage the quality of new HMOs and also assess their numbers to protect the family homes in these parts of the city.
“This is just one of the measures the council has taken to ensure residents of Hull are provided with high-quality affordable accommodation in the years ahead.”
The new rules would allow the local authority to assess individual proposals to ensure they comply with the Hull Local Plan and do not have a detrimental effect on the area.
A final decision is to be taken by Full Council on Thursday 18 July. If endorsed, the direction will come into force on Thursday 8 August.
