Published Thursday 24 March 2022 at 12:04
The Council have successfully brought another empty and neglected property back into use as residential accommodation.
This property on New Wellington Street, Blackburn was once a fish and chip shop but had stood empty for many years, falling into a state of serious disrepair.
As the owner was unfortunately unable to be traced, a compulsory purchase order was made, transferring ownership directly to the Council.
A local estate agents then advertised the property for sale and a buyer was selected based on evidence of their ability to carry out a full renovation and provide residential housing.
Before
After
After
The works have now recently been completed to provide a 3-bedroom home, with a lucky new occupier set to move in very soon!
Councillor Phil Riley, Blackburn with Darwen Council’s Deputy Leader, said:
Empty properties attract vandalism, fly-tipping and other anti-social behaviour, having a negative impact on the surrounding community. It remains a major priority for us to tackle this and restore the properties so they are no longer a concern for the neighbourhood, but instead a positive feature.
The Council’s empty properties team negotiate with owners of long term empty homes to encourage them to bring their houses back into use. In cases where this is not possible, the team may negotiate to buy by agreement but enforcement action may also be taken as a last resort.
There are currently around 996 properties that are considered to be long term empty homes within our borough, as they have been unoccupied for longer than 6 months. The empty properties team makes contact with every single one of these owners to ensure that action is being taken to bring the homes back into use.
Of those 996 long term empty homes, 356 have stood empty for over 2 years and, where the owner is known, there will be intensive negotiations to find a way to bring the properties back into use. In some cases enforcement action will be necessary.
If there is an empty property in your neighbourhood that is causing a nuisance, please contact the Empty Properties Team on Tel: 01254 585213 or by email to emptyproperties@blackburn.gov.uk