EXCLUSIVEFurious locals blast plans for £1k-a-night holiday let apartments in luxury seafront block... and say they know the REAL reason 'arrogant' owners need London tourists
Furious locals have blasted plans to allow a swanky block of apartments on the seafront to be let on Airbnb for a massive £1,050 a night.
They claim the decision to allow holiday letting has come from a lack of interest in buying the luxury flats in Folkestone, Kent, built by the multi-millionaire to the Saga fortune.
The move has been branded 'absolutely outrageous' and residents fear it will 'rip the heart out of the town'.
Shoreline Crescent - made up of 84 individual properties ranging in price from £430,000 to £1.8 million - with fights between the developers having been ongoing since last year.
Furious locals have blasted plans to allow a swanky block of apartments on the seafront to be let on Airbnb for a massive £1,050 a night
They claim the decision to allow holiday letting has come from a lack of interest in buying the luxury flats in Folkestone, Kent, built by the multi-millionaire to the Saga fortune
Sir Roger De Haan - the multi-millionaire behind the development - had said Shoreline properties 'won't be used as Airbnbs at all'
Sir Roger De Haan - one of the richest people in Britain and responsible for the development - had said Shoreline properties 'won't be used as Airbnbs at all', while claiming that 'the whole community' will benefit from the investment.
But now two beach houses are being advertised as a 'luxurious holiday experience'.
Sarah Rowling, 41, who lives in the town, described the decision as a 'great shame'.
She said: 'The properties are right out of my price range. I still cannot believe how much they are priced at for what you're getting.
'I do quite like the development itself. But no local people can afford it.
'Now it appears they can't sell many, so they are having to use them as holiday lets.
'I am not surprised it's empty. This won't solve anything though.
'We'll just get more people down from London and they'll remain empty.
'It's a beautiful spot. But locals have been ignored throughout the process. We should have been included more.'
Last September locals complained that a 'high-pitched' noise from the development was keeping them 'awake all night' and driving them 'insane'.
Sarah Rowling, 41, who lives in the town, described the decision as a 'great shame'
Inside the property at Shoreline Crescent in Folkestone, Kent. Where bosses have backtracked on an Airbnb ban at a controversial seaside development
For a four-bedroom holiday let - The Beach House - is also open to stays, for an eye-watering £2,100 for two nights
The block's balconies have been blamed for the high-pitched noise which residents claim is driving people out of Folkestone
Local friends Sarah Clifton, 58, and Helen Filmer, 57, both were upset at the news.
Helen, a retired NHS executive, said: 'It's sad. For the money they are charging, they surely could have done something better for the area.
'For that price, I am not sure why you would want to live there. The views are stunning. But that's about it.
'The fact they are having to rent them out as Airbnbs is surely a demonstration that it has not worked.
'Especially after saying with clarity that it would not be an option. It's terrible.'
Locals previously compared plans for the new flats on Folkestone's shoreline to the rock house occupied by The Flintstones family in the 1960s cartoon.
Sharon, who works at Aldi, said: 'The area is run down, I am not sure why anybody would pay so much.
'What are you getting? People coming in using them as a holiday homes just means more people from away from here in the summer and then leaves them empty in the winter.'
Simon Parkinson, 44, who lives in the town, said it was a sign the scheme was unsuccessful.
The builder said: 'They clearly cannot be selling well else you would not have them as holiday lets.
'Locals have been alienated from the start and made to feel like they are not worthy of living there.
'But Folkestone, as nice as it is, is not the best tourist spot in Kent. There's others which would be of a higher priority.
'I think there's been a lot of arrogance attached to the scheme from the start and that's coming back to bite the people behind it.
'This is a massive u-turn. There's no other way of wording it as a massive reversal in their plans.'
Local friends Sarah Clifton, 58, and Helen Filmer, 57, both were upset at the news
A two-bed called The View is available for £526.25 a night, with a two-night minimum stay
The block is part of a major development containing a planned 1,000 homes being led by the heir to the Saga fortune, Sir Roger De Haan
Simon said he feared they would have to rent out other properties in the complex.
He said: 'They cannot be happy doing it. And I think it's just awful.
'There might be a few visitors in the summer but come the winter, who will want to stay?
'So between September and April or May, it'll be even emptier.'
Outdoor instructor Oliver Daw, 25, said he was now expecting an influx of people from out of town to use it.
He said: 'It's been priced out of reach for locals from the start and I think that has proved a problem for them.
'People feel left out. Bringing in people to rent them from outside of here is surely not the answer.
'It's just going to cause more problems.
'It's a great place to live. But this is just pricing out people from in the town.'
Mark Goodwin, 33, said he was 'staggered' at the Airbnb news.
The administrator said: 'It makes zero sense, other than they need to get some money.
'There's not been any thought for local people here at all.'
A sales brochure for flats in Shoreline Crescent boasts the properties offer 'sprawling rooftop terraces' with 'uninterrupted views out to sea.'
The block, which is described in its brochure as 'one of the finest beachside developments in the country,' was designed by award-winning architecture practice AMCE, which has also led projects in destinations including London and Berlin.
The new block sits on the beach at Folkestone offering uninterrupted views of the sea
Outdoor instructor Oliver Daw, 25, said he was now expecting an influx of people from out of town to use it
Photographer Neil Gear, 53, said he was concerned the project was not in keeping with the area
Photographer Neil Gear, 53, said he was concerned the project was not in keeping with the area.
He said: 'They cannot be selling them. This is surely not the answer to just let them out.'
Both of the houses are being advertised by Canterbury-based holiday letting agency Bloom Stays, including on Booking.com.
A two-bed called The View is available for £526.25 a night, with a two-night minimum.
A bigger four-bedroom holiday let - The Beach House - is also open to stays, for an eye-watering £2,100 for two nights.
For the two-bed, August 8-14 has already been booked out.
The Beach House is occupied from August 1-15, and then again from August 23 to the 25. August 31 is also taken.
A Shoreline spokesman has admitted: 'The strategy at Shoreline Folkestone has evolved to allow short-term rental due to the strong demand from people wanting to experience beachside living in our great town for themselves.
'We have put in place tangible measures to ensure that anyone renting properties do not adversely affect their neighbours or the wider local community and we are working with quality partners to manage the process.'
