Archaeologists dig on former Clarence Mill earmarked for hundreds of riverbank homes

East Bank urban village is on the east bank of the River Hull and runs from the former Clarence Mill, which was demolished in 2015, to beyond the Scale Lane bridge. It could take 850 new homes.

Money from a £10m Government levelling up grant will be used to remediate the mill site and make it viable for developers.

Councillor Paul Drake-Davis said a lead developer hadn’t yet been appointed. He said: “We’ve had six or seven developers saying they are interested but we haven’t actually appointed anyone yet, that will be happening over the next few months.

“To make it financially viable there are a lot of groundworks that need doing.”

Various attempts have been made to develop the site, which includes the car park by the Scale Lane Bridge and the Grade II Listed building, former Trinity Buoy Shed, over two decades.

The urban village started out as The Boom development in the early 2000s.

Coun Drake-Davis said the council was looking to use some of the government grant towards buying the car park from Homes England. “We need to build more housing within the city boundaries and that relies on us using brownfield land rather than digging up green fields. I see this as a catalyst. When this starts to happen people will look at the area with a fresh perspective.”

Subject to any discoveries, it is hoped that a community dig will follow in the summer so locals can find out more about the hidden history of the city for themselves.

The site has been allocated for high-quality apartments with the opportunity for features such as social rooftop areas and spaces for families and outdoor play.