Category Archives: Housing

New homes for Hodge Hill, Shard End and Bordesley Green

One of the promises I made at the last election, was to campaign for hundreds of new family homes in the constituency.

Here’s a quick update on where we’ve got to.

New homes are proposed along key corridors and at Sustainable Urban Neighbourhoods including Bordesley Park, Stechford, Meadway and Shard End.

An outline planning application for residential development has been submitted for the B&Q site at Stechford, and other residential development opportunities are now being explored (there is the potential for Supplementary Planning Document to bring further sites forward, if we fall short).

The planning application approved for redevelopment of Shard End Crescent and adjoining maisonettes is of course already in hand. This development is going to provide a new local centre, a library and 191 new houses and flats.  Barrratts are the developers, and they are being supported by funds we won from the Homes & Community Agency (HCA).

On the Meadway, there are still on-going discussions with HCA about a new residential/ district centre, and this has been identified as a ‘New Town Centre’ within the city’s Core Strategy.

Second, the Bordesley Park Area Action Plan is developing ideas for an Area Action Plan with options identified that will go to a public consultation in Autumn.

Finally, potential housing sites across City are being identified through a review of Strategic Housing land Availablity Assessment (as part of the Evidence Base for Core Strategy)  This includes the former Yardley Sewage Works site.

 

Timetable for Bayley and Stoneycroft tower demolition

I mentioned the timetable for blowing up the two towers on the Bromford now awaits the departure of the nesting Peregrine falcons…if all goes according to plan, this is the time-table I’ve been given…

It’s a 4 step plan.
- 2 July: tenders for appointment of demolition contractor
- August: appoint demolition contractor
- End August/ beginning September: start removal internal soft stripping
- April 2011: blocks finally destroyed

There are two issues;
1. Peregrine falcons are nesting in the blocks. The blocks can’t be destroyed until they’re gone

2. We need Central Networks to remove and re-site existing sub-stations. The latest date for this is end of October 2010.

I’ll keep you posted on news.

 

Liam and residents finally victorious over demolition of Bromford Towers

Hodge Hill MP Liam Byrne has welcomed a decision to demolish two tower blocks in Hodge Hill ward. The decision came after Liam lobbied the Housing Minister John Healey, and persuaded the government’s Homes and Communities Agency to step in.

The tower blocks – Bayley and Stoneycroft – were on a provisional demolition grid as early as 2003, and residents were looking forward to the blocks being pulled down.

Liam had led local residents in protests when it became clear that the Tory-Lib Dem council were failing to address the problem.

Liam Byrne MP said: ”I welcome this decision but question why it has taken this incompetent council seven  years to get to this point. They have been spending £3,000 a month just to keep the towers secure and £14,000 a month to underwrite the council tax.

“The council has wasted over £127,000 on securing these blocks when they should have been pulled down years ago. This at a time when the council is shedding 2,000 jobs and has managed its books so poorly that the district auditor initially refused to sign them off.

“This is a testament to people power. So many residents came out and voted with their feet when we held the protest. It made it almost impossible for the council not to listen in the end.”

The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) has stepped in to help the Council find the money to knock down the blocks.

John Healey, Minister for Housing welcomed the move, and praised Liam’s commitment to sorting the issue out: ”I’m pleased that these flats are being demolished. Labour is committed to decent, secure and affordable homes for all, and this is great news for residents who have had to live with housing that no longer meet the needs of the community. I’m particularly pleased that I was able to release the £1.2m funding to get the work moving.”

“I know that Liam has campaigned tirelessly to make this happen, and I pay tribute to his work on behalf of his constituents.”

Notes

1. Footage of the protest in 2009 can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0XJgGZtbvs

2. Liam Byrne submitted an FOI request about the cost of maintaining the towers. Copy available on request.

 

Bring these Towers Down!

Talking to protestors on the BromfordA huge thank-you to the hundreds of local residents who turned out this afternoon on the Bromford, to send Birmingham City Council a message; bring our eye-sore towers down. See the BBC news coverage here. Cllr Lines tells us that he’s not yet made a decision about whether to keep the promise to us to blow-up the blocks. Well, don’t take too long. The security is costing anywhere between £2,000-£10,000 a month. In fact some estimates put the cost of emptying the blocks and keeping them empty at £2 million! That’s practically the budget to blow them up agreed in the first place. We refuse to be treated like second class citizens of Birmingham. Bring these towers down!

 

Byrne leads residents in protest on eyesore blocks

Liam Byrne today led local residents to protest about the future of Bayley and Stoneycroft Towers on the Bromford Estate.

Birmingham City Council were due to demolish the 20-storey towers that are a magnet for anti social behaviour four years ago.  After spending over £1million of taxpayers money rehousing tenants they have now made a dramatic ‘U’ turn. Cllr John Lines says he has ‘no choice’ but to refurbish the towers, and has warned that the council will need to borrow massive amounts of money to do so.

Liam Byrne, the Member of Parliament for Hodge Hill is leading the protest after residents demanded that it was time for action not words. Hundreds of local people have filled in his surveys over the past 12 months demanding that the council keep their promise to demolish.

Liam said:

‘I’m here today for one simple reason. The council have broken their promise to residents of the Bromford. To rub salt into the wound they have wasted over £1million pounds of taxpayers hard earned money to do it. I’m told that Birmingham City council are spending £2,000 per month on security guards, but residents say they have never seen a security guard patrol.

‘I’m here to fight for a fair deal for our families‘

Local campaigner, Maria Phipps said:

‘We have just had enough. People feel so strongly about this that they are closing their local shops to come and protest. The council think we’re stupid. What has happened to the money that was put aside to demolish the blocks? Four years ago John Lines said the towers were in poor condition and would not be cost effective to repair. Nothing has changed.

Youth worker Paul Wright who works with 50 local young people said:

‘£1million pounds would have bought a whole new youth centre for youngsters, giving them somewhere safe to develop new skills. £1million pounds would have run local sports projects, after school activities and paid two youth workers wages for nearly 17 years making a long term sustainable difference to our young people’s future.

Liam added:

‘Councillor Lines is trying to blame 300 asylum seeker families ‘forced’ on them by the government to turn the towers back into social housing. This is ludicrous. The city’s asylum seeking families already have a roof over their heads, they don’t need rehousing. Those with no right to be here will be removed.

This is a shameless attempt to dodge the issue. Why not demolish the towers and sell the land to a housing association who can build homes for local people. Use the money to regenerate the Bromford.’