Plans to demolish high rises will not help this winter, say residents (From Enfield Independent)

Plans to demolish high rises will not help this winter, say residents

12:26pm Tuesday 28th July 2009

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RESIDENTS in some of Enfield's most notorious buildings are pleading for emergency work to be done immediately despite plans to demolish it.

People who live on the Ladderswood Estate, Ladderswood Way, New Southgate, were told last week of plans to redevelop the estate with new low-rise buildings.

The plans come after Enfield Homes, which manages the council's housing stock, was promoted to a two star "good" authority by the Audit Commission, opening the door to millions in funding.

Chief Executive Bob Heapy assured residents who attended a public meeting in the Grove Road Christian Centre, New Southgate, that a decision will be made in November.

"The council are very serious about doing something different," he said.

Residents welcomed the plans but said something needs to be done now.

Pensioner Brian Stewart, 67, said although things had got better over the past month there was only one of the original three communal boilers which worked and residents had been waiting more than two months for a new part to arrive from Italy.

Mr Heapy admitted the part had not arrived yet.

"It will be 18 months before anything happens, three winters before anything is done," Mr Stewart said.

"There's people living there that won't survive another winter. They have cracked doors and windows.

"You don't have to be an engineer to work out that one boiler can't cope."

Southgate MP, David Burrowes, who set up and chaired the meeting on the request of residents, agreed.

In the winter you see people coming into my surgery shivering," he said.

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