Should the grade 2 listed building known as Benlow Works be compulsory purchased?
Nov 8th, 2009 by admin
Benlow Works has been vandalised and neglected by it’s current owners. Should the government compulsory purchase this old factory built in 1909 so it can be put to good use?
I don’t know enough about the surroundings, but in America we face the situation where laws intended to help the poor are corrupted by builders who want to build high density housing on the easy-to-build sites without any compulsion on their part to live with the results of overcrowding roads and facilities, while within 5 miles lie abandoned industrial sites that were once major employers in their cities, but need to be cleaned of ground contamination. Only a few of these sites are claimed by the governments and used for recreation because they are afraid to chase away potential builders from the more valuable sites. In other instances, public money is used to finance private construction of polluted sites, but poor oversight and corruption leaves the projects partially built and in financial failure. Our judicial system often sides with the property owners, not the town governments, because property rights are what caused that little disturbance here in 1776.
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I don’t know enough about the surroundings, but in America we face the situation where laws intended to help the poor are corrupted by builders who want to build high density housing on the easy-to-build sites without any compulsion on their part to live with the results of overcrowding roads and facilities, while within 5 miles lie abandoned industrial sites that were once major employers in their cities, but need to be cleaned of ground contamination. Only a few of these sites are claimed by the governments and used for recreation because they are afraid to chase away potential builders from the more valuable sites. In other instances, public money is used to finance private construction of polluted sites, but poor oversight and corruption leaves the projects partially built and in financial failure. Our judicial system often sides with the property owners, not the town governments, because property rights are what caused that little disturbance here in 1776.
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The government doesn’t really do CPOs now, that is why we had all those Restoration programmes on the telly, it is up to local councils and voluntary groups to look after listed buildings, and the private sector if that is appropriate.
I don’t know if you are acting on your own or you are a part of a local civic or conservation group that want to preserve this building. So the first step is to contact one of these groups if you are not involved with them already. A listed building can only be demolished through a loophole if it is a dangerous structure so if a property developer is holding onto this building they have to be shown that they can think again. If they demolish it they get a fine, which may not deter some, but you need to find out who owns the building. Generally now we are better at preserving listed buildings and putting them back into use, in the area I live in our old fire station has become business units and and also a Victorian school that had been turned into run-down shops on the ground floor.
Sorry not to be more help, I love old buildings, but your first step is definately your local conservation group, good luck.
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