Gleeson Homes abandons Oldham housing project

Posted under General by Jermaine

A landmark housing development, undertaken by housebuilder Gleeson homes in partnership with Oldham council way back in January 2005, has been abandoned. Gleeson needed to save on capital due to the severe credit crunch and found the Oldham development too resource-intensive to continue.

The scheme involved construction of 192 eco-friendly upmarket apartments, with rooftop lawns, solar panels, wind turbines and a 10 storey tower with parks.

It was a very tough decision for the pull out since Gleeson had already made huge investment into the project. Gleeson decided to withdraw since it found it was no longer able to continue providing expected service to Oldham.

The Oldham council will assess all options for future developments and decide which housing developer could be entrusted with development of the site, or would explore other avenues.

The council is however considering Gleeson Homes’ withdrawal from the project as a temporary setback. The council is considering this as a major opportunity which it would utilise for reassessing use of the site for broader plans for town centre.

The city centre site, measuring 2.5 acre was previously the home of number of flats. It experienced many setbacks earlier also. It is currently serving as a free car park for visitors of town centre.