9:15am Thursday 27th November 2008
By Charlotte Gray
Fifty of the borough’s most run-down houses are to be brought back on the market by Haringey Council.
The scheme will see Haringey’s worst eyesore homes bought by the council through court orders and sold off to developers.
Empty homes across the borough have suffered from fires, squatting and flytipping over the years, leading to calls for action.
Now a new campaign will transform the worst of these empty houses, in and around Tottenham, into new residential properties.
The Council will first take action against the 20 worst eyesores with a combination of compulsory purchase orders, obtained from the government, and sales enforced through the courts.
Cabinet member for housing, Councillor John Bevan, said: "There is a huge demand for good quality housing in Haringey, so it's simply unacceptable that property owners should allow homes to go to rack and ruin.
"Eyesore properties not only bring down the look and feel of an area, they can also attract squatting, anti-social behaviour and crime.
"We will do everything in our power to bring our worst eyesore properties back into use, so that more people in Haringey can enjoy a decent home.”
But the purchase of these homes is a lengthy process and in the current economic climate the council cannot guarantee when these new houses would be built.
In April the council applied for compulsory purchase orders to takeover two abandoned properties in Philip Lane, Tottenham.
These houses had remained empty from 2002 and were lived in by squatters until the council finally took action this year, four years later.
However this new campaign of action, launched to coincide with a national week of action for empty properties this week, will attack the worst 20 properties before moving on to the next 30.
Chief executive of the national Empty Homes Agency, David Ireland, said: “At the very time people need more homes, record numbers are falling empty.
“There are now enough vacant homes in England to house almost two million people yet far more attention is paid to building new ones.”
To encourage owners to refurbish their shoddy properties, a council grant of up to £17,000 is available, allowing the council to then rent it out as social housing for five years afterwards.
Mr Bevan added: "I'd urge anyone who owns an empty property in Haringey to contact us to find out more about grants available to help them bring them back into use."
For more information call the empty property officer Anoma Amarajeewa on 020 8489 4214.
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