Ouseburn eco-housing development gets underway

A new eco-friendly housing development is underway in Newcastle as part of a larger £50m redevelopment scheme.

The Malings development will consist of 76 sustainable and low-energy homes in the Ouseburn area of the city.

The homes will be constructed on the east bank of the Ouseburn at the former Ice Factory and Heaney’s Coachworks site, work is set to begin in June.

Award-winning architects Cany Ash and Robert Sakula have promoted sustainable, low-energy living by prioritising build quality and super-high levels of insulation and air-tightness rather than resorting to the use of complex eco-technologies.

A spokesperson for Max Fordham Engineers said: “The low energy design strategies at the Malings will ensure significantly lower energy costs than a period family terraced property in Jesmond.

“The enhanced insulation, building airtightness and high efficiency boilers will allow savings of up to 70% on gas usage for heating and hot water.

“The resulting gas usage cost could be as low as £170 per year compared to a typical cost of £580 per year for the older style properties.”

The Malings development is the first phase of a larger scale redevelopment scheme that will invest £50m in key sites running along both banks of the Ouseburn where it feeds into the River Tyne on Newcastle’s Quayside.

The development, named after Malings Pottery which occupied the site in the 19th century, will offer three story, four bedroom townhouses, two story maisonettes, one bedroom apartments and four story detached ‘tower houses.’

Homes will be built with locally sourced brick with highly insulated construction and high-perfomance timber-framed windows.

All homes will have back gardens, roof gardens or balconies and each property will have its own front door opening onto the street with no shared hallways or lifts.

There is also planned provision for more than 150 secure bicycle storage spaces, shared allotments, areas for communal recycling and open-air clothes drying, plus ultra-quick broadband.

The prices of the new homes are likely to range between £115,000 and £250,000 and buyers are expected to receive the keys to their new homes during 2014 and 2015 with the first show home being ready by April of next year.