The purchase of the whole block has been completed by the council’s housing department in the first such arrangement of its kind in the city. The first tenants moved into the apartments on 14 December.

The former public house had been on the market for 18 months but no interest had been expressed in running it as a public house or in purchasing it as a commercial development opportunity.

However it was subsequently purchased by the York-based developer RHW Developments. The planning application was submitted in late March 2014 and the acquisition price paid by the council in stages during construction.

The flats have been built to high energy efficiency levels – Code for Sustainable Homes Level 4 – and to Lifetime Homes’ standards to ensure they can be easily modified as tenants’ needs change.

With easy access to shops, bus routes, medical services and a Post Office, the homes are prioritised for people with good tenancy records and tenants aged over 55 wishing to downsize thereby freeing up larger homes for growing families.

Meanwhile, tenants of eight new homes at Hewley Avenue will be moving into the two-bedroomed apartments in the coming weeks.

Early in the new year, work will start on eight new homes at Chaloners Road providing two houses and six apartments, and construction of eight apartments at Fenwick Street will begin, as well as six houses on Pottery Lane.

For information and advice on your housing options, visit www.york.gov.uk/housingoptions or call 01904 554500.