Demolition has started. The council told residents that they were "soft stripping" property - meaning removing the interiors. You can see from the video that things have moved on!
Could it be coincidence that one resident has applied for judical review of the decision to demolish at the very time the council have increased the speed of demolition?
What is true is the real danger the community is now in. A thin wire fence separates streets where people live and play from falling bricks and masonary. Some of the 1970s improvements such as kitchens and bathrooms may have had asbestos in the walls. While this video was being recorded on a mobile phone a woman with baby buggy was just a few yards from falling bricks.
Meanwhile if you live in the area and need to call an ambulance or the fire brigade vital minutes will be wasted because the back lanes are now blocked with JCBs. As this is where the main fire hydrants are located this adds another danger to residents lives.
One disabled man located in MacAdam Street is now surrounded by demoliton and imprisioned in his own home.
Look carefully at the video and other than Gateshead Council's attempt to board up windows many of the former residences now being demolished have good quality roofs and some have recently installed double-glazed windows. Up to £80,000 per home is being paid for demolition.
The adjacent street is going to be more expensive for Gateshead Council. Prices have reached £85,000 for flats. So the demolition of enough space to build a small replacement property will cost the taxpayer £170,000 before the cost of demolition itself is factored in. Officers of the council have previously admitted that there isn't much change out of £12,000 per property to demolish.No privacy exists for the remaining residents. The contractors have views into yards and bedrooms of occupied property. The noise, dust and danger are considerable.
We are told there are also pictures of health and safety issues on the site for the workers. We are hoping to publish photographs of people working without hard hats or safety equipment on the roof of some of the property.
This process is not part of building communities. It's about desperate partnerships with the private sector to enrich builders and developers wanting to get their hands on inner city land to make a financial windfall. The banks wouldn't lend developers the millions it is going to cost to demolish so it's down to the taxpayer.
