A waiver for city centre developers that exempts them from the need to build affordable properties will roll-on until June 2022, despite no one having moved into housing as a result of the policy over the last two years.
Aberdeen councillors have extended the moratorium on affordable housing requirements for firms building in city centre in an effort to stimulate building.
The waiver has been on offer since September 2018 and although eligible plans for around 450 homes have been approved since, none is yet inhabited.
But yesterday council officers recommended elected members extend the scheme and blamed the coronavirus crisis for its seemingly underwhelming impact.
The Point development at Triple Kirks has been the largest scheme to benefit from the break, with around 340 homes soon to be readied for moving in.
Planning committee members were told coronavirus had affected the delivery of the properties, but that the policy was responsible for a “significant increase” in the number of applications for city centre work.
Officers said before lockdown that developer Dandara had been expected to gain sign-off for people to move in by April.
Building of about another 60 homes in city centre is underway, meaning work is outstanding on only around 50 properties.
Developers have just a year to begin work after securing planning permission, if they are to benefit from the waiver.
Opposition SNP councillor John Cooke called for the scheme to be left to expire in December, fearing it made living the city centre exclusive to the well paid.
He said: “My issue is the waiver is not sufficiently inclusive.
“I do want to encourage city centre living but not at the exclusion of lower paid folk: the refuse collectors, supermarket checkout workers and nurses.”
Liberal Democrat councillor Martin Greig said it was “disappointing” there were, as yet, no more people living in the city centre because of the two-year-old policy.
Councillors voted eight to three to extend the moratorium, which was due to end at the turn of the year.
Planning convener Marie Boulton warned the council needed to continue to encourage city centre living or else risked having “a desert in the heart of Aberdeen”.
“Developers have said the additional costs they are incurring because of coronavirus now has made some development not viable – we need to address that.
“We have to make sure we have a vibrant city centre which is a heart that beats, not one slowly dying because retail and office space is not occupied.”
