Problem homes to be flattened and rebuilt

Problem homes to be flattened and rebuilt

27 April 2016

FIVE homes suffering from structural problems at a Downpatrick housing estate are to be bulldozed and rebuilt.

The homes are part of the Hunters Mill development located off Stream Street where internal and external cracks appeared as a result of subsidence soon after they were built a decade ago, with the problems linked to poor ground conditions in the area.

Politicians have been attempting to resolve the issue with the National House Building Council (NHBC) for several years and the organisation has now confirmed it has purchased two of the five properties and hopes to complete deals for the other three over the coming weeks.

Councillor Cadogan Enright, who has been working alongside the Stream Street Residents’ Association to resolve the long-standing issue at Hunters Mill, is delighted progress has at last been made. He said it’s anticipated all five homes will be demolished with the sites offered for sale.

“I have been working on this issue for 10 years. Problems developed with a number of homes at this particular development as a result of ground conditions and I am glad this saga is now coming to a close with the NHBC picking up the bill for the firm which originally built the homes and is now bankrupt,” he continued.

“Essentially, the NHBC will buy the properties concerned, demolish them, and then sell the sites off to a new developer to start from scratch.”

Councillor Enright believes that with Newry, Mourne and Down Council now responsible for planning, it can ensure the five homes at Hunters Mill are demolished and rebuilt in a way that will cause minimum trouble to other residents in the area.

He said the HNBC has informed him by letter that once it owns all five properties at Hunters Mill it will be selling the site they are located on, but could not confirm who would purchase them or who the likely developer would be.

Councillor Enright said the NHBC believes it is unlikely anyone would seek to repair the five properties as they stand and it is more likely they would be demolished and, subject to planning, new properties built on the site.

He added: “The NHBC said while it cannot be specific as to what will eventually become of the site, it intends to deal with the sale of the land where the homes are currently located sympathetically.  The NHBC says it will very much bear in mind the interests of the properties around the five homes and that nothing is done that would be detrimental to them.”