City residents support move to demolish doomed tower blocks

DEMOLITION notices are to be served on residents living in seven tower blocks in Hull ahead of a long-awaited regeneration scheme.

Residents living on the city’s Orchard Park estate will be receiving the notices after a decision by Hull Council’s Cabinet yesterday.

Demolition is due to start early in 2011 and will be completed by 2015. The first block scheduled to be bulldozed is Homethorpe.

Councillors yesterday also gave their backing for the submission of 150m plans to the Government, which will see 500 new council homes built on the estate, with 170 for sale.

The plans involve 300 system-built council houses being demolished as well as the tower blocks.

Coun Rick Welton said that in spite of Government spending cuts they were hopeful of approval when their outline business case is submitted in December.

He said: “We have heard nothing negative about the private finance initiative (PFI) programmes yet and we have been encouraged to continue to work on the outline business case by the relevant departments so we are assuming they are expecting that the Department for Communities and Local Government will have the money to do it.” However MP for North Hull Diana Johnson said the questionmark remained. “The fundamental question is whether the Orchard Park PFI scheme will go ahead, now that the Government has announced a 60 per cent funding cut to social housing investment.

“I asked ministers in the House of Commons last Thursday about this and was told that an announcement will be made shortly.

“I am surprised that Hull City Council is not waiting for this decision from ministers before going further with demolition in Orchard Park.”

According to the council, the majority living in the tower blocks (70 per cent) backed the demolition scheme, with 19 per cent against and 11 per cent unsure.

Coun Welton said people would benefit from living in “modern houses built to modern standards” with extra insulation which would cut energy bills by about half and rooms which could be easily adapted to suit the elderly or infirm.

The road layouts would revert from cul de sacs and dead ends, to more traditional schemes, to try to prevent anti-social behaviour.

The estate is also getting a new Northern Academy, new shopping centre and a separate scheme for “extra care” housing, as well as two community parks.

The original plans envisaged more than 1,000 new homes with a greater mix of private housing, but following consultation that was whittled down.

Coun Welton added: “What we have got now is a smaller but more phased programme so people can stay on Orchard Park if that’s what they want to do.”

Corporate Director for Regeneration at Hull City Council Pauline Davis said: “When you combine the proposals for new housing with the other regeneration initiatives that are taking place in the area, such as the new academy, shopping facilities and extra care housing scheme, you are looking at a total investment in excess of 200m.

“This demonstrates that Hull City Council is 100 per cent committed to delivering change in Orchard Park.”

A final decision from the Government is expected in spring. If the funding is agreed, Hull City Council will then begin a two to three-year procurement process to find a development partner who will build the new homes. Work is expected to start in 2014.

The demolition of the seven towerblocks is being funded from the council’s housing revenue account.