Order confirmed on derelict building

A public inquiry was held in April into a council application for confirmation of a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) relating to Emmfield Villas, in Emm Lane.

The decision notice from the planning inspector says: “The Secretary of State accepts that a compelling case in the public interest for confirming the order has been made.”

The council’s member for culture, planning and housing, the Rev Paul Flowers, said: “This case demonstrates that we are determined to take all action necessary, including compulsory purchase, to prevent the blight that empty properties can cause for neighbourhoods and communities.”

He added that the council was hoping to sell the property to a suitable developer for renovation and bring the Emmfield Villas building back into use as soon as possible.

Permission was granted in 2008 to convert the building into three houses but work never began and the council received a number of complaints about the state of the derelict structure.