Action on unsightly Bury New Road shops
I hear on the Council grapevine that action is about to be taken to try to improve the ghastly shacks that used to be shops opposite St Mary’s Park on Bury New Road.
The row of shops starts nicely enough, with a few lovely outlets. Unfortunately about halfway along it turns into something out of a post-apocalyptic nightmare vision of Prestwich, as empty units lie crumbling into the road. When they’re not housing the district’s rats or making Prestwich look like the remnant of a forgotten civil war, these units are used to peddle illegal fireworks. So it’s good that the Council are now threatening the owners with enforcement action.
Apart from the dodgy use to which these buildings are sometimes put, they look awful. The owners have said they will re-develop them shortly, but given that we’re in the middle of God’s Own Economic Revenge, that might not actually happen for a while. So, whilst we wait to see, we can at least make them tart it up. The Council can (and now will) take enforcement action under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to abate the nuisance and bring the properties back to an acceptable standard. This will mean that the owners will be required to take various remedial steps such as re-painting and re-glazing.
It’s just a start, but it’s better than nothing, and hopefully perhaps a bit of a renaissance for that forgotten corner of town.
Rick
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