RESIDENTS living in limbo on the notorious Craylands estate are facing six more weeks of waiting before they’re told if their homes will be demolished.
Leaseholders on the estate, which is at the centre of £250 million regeneration project, have been told they must fork out £20,000 each for repairs to roofs, doors and windows.
However, they are yet to be told if there homes will ultimately be razed to the ground and replaced with new properties.
The homes, in “phase south” of the estate are the only properties still standing as part of the long-awaited £250 million regeneration which has already seen “phase west” and “phase north” demolished and new homes built.
The deadline for a decision on the buildings’ future was initially set for the end of October, buthowever this has been pushed back.
Leaseholders have now received communication from Basildon Council stating a decision will be announced in the next six weeks.
Colin Parkins, 66, who owns ones of the homes, has slammed the council for an alleged lack of communication over the future.
“There’s been such little communication from the council so far, so to receive this letter feels like a massive kick in the teeth,” said Colin.
He added: “They’ve strung us alongon for the entire time, and this is a conversation that goes back decades.
“The council are not looking at us like people and I think that is the most unacceptable part of all of this”.
The development of the Craylands estate has been a decades-long process, and the remaining homes will be the final part of the site to be worked on.
More than 15 years ago, the scheme was initially launched to raze the estate to the ground and build 1,310 homes.
Basildon Council has confirmed that it has conducted a review of proposals for the remaining properties, grouped into Beechwood Village Phase South, and will be communicating with residents in coming weeks.
A council spokesperson said: “We have now completed an extensive review of proposals for Beechwood Village phase south and will be writing to residents to explain our findings and next steps.”
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