COURT ORDER OVER DERELICT PROPERTY

The owners of a derelict property in Margate have been ordered by the courts to carry out work to bring it back to a good level of repair.



After receiving complaints about the state of 33 Beresford Gardens, the council served a Notice under the Town and Country Planning Act in February 2011, requiring certain improvement works to be carried out.



The work includes:

repairing and repainting all the windows and doors at both the front and back of the property,
repairing, replacing and repainting the timber balustrades to the balconies at the front of the property
checking that the balcony decking is structurally stable
repairing and repainting all damaged render
checking the condition of the chimney
cutting back and disposing of the overgrown plants in the back garden

The notice came into effect at the end of March 2011 and gave the owners three months to do what was needed. They appealed against the notice to the Magistrates’ Court, who dismissed the appeal and upheld the notice, awarding the council costs of £790.56. The owners now have to comply with the court decision and carry out the work by 18 January 2012.



Cllr. Chris Wells, Cabinet Member for Community Services, said: “This property is one that’s progressively become more of a blot on the landscape over the last few years, as its condition has deteriorated. The council was left with no option but to take action. We would always prefer to work with the owners of property and for them to voluntarily carry out the work that’s needed, but sadly that hasn’t happened in this case. It’s clear that the building is having an impact on the surrounding properties and the court agreed with that. We look forward to the required work finally being carried out and I’m sure when it is, it will be great relief to those living near to this eyesore.”