DOZENS of homes are springing up on former industrial land that was branded an eyesore by locals.
Developers are transforming two adjoining sites at the end of Brokenford Lane, Totton, by building a total of 45 homes - many of which will be affordable.
The land, which is next to the Waterloo to Weymouth railway line, was previously targeted by arsonists and fly-tippers.
In February last year Fresh Developments (UK) Ltd was given planning permission to build 24 homes - 18 houses and a block of six flats.
A report produced by New Forest District Council said: "The site has lain vacant for many years and this proposal represents a good opportunity to create a quality townscape in this part of Totton."
Three months later Sovereign was given consent to build 21 homes on neighbouring land that was previously occupied by Fenwicks Storage Yard.
The council said: "Overall there will be a significant uplift in this area of Totton once both this site is developed and the site to the north-west.
"The removal of unsightly industrial buildings and the redevelopment with good quality housing will result in a significant boost in visual terms to that area of the town."
Totton councillor David Harrison welcomed the progress being made on both schemes.
He said: "It's wonderful to see this brownfield site being developed, providing much needed new homes in the area. There were a few false starts over the years with planning permissions being granted and then finding that the builders didn't develop the site as expected."
During the planning process some of the locals said the proposed development would create extra traffic problems in the area.
Cllr Harrison said: "There is no such thing as an ideal site for development.
"This one presented the challenge of accepting that all the traffic to and from the site has to negotiate a narrow bottleneck at the southern end of Brokenford Lane. Pavement parking is also a problem locally.
"However the need for housing outweighed the challenges and I know a lot of people will really benefit from this new housing."
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