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Efforts to trace the landlord of a derelict building are continuing, a council has insisted amid concern over its neglect.
The former church presbytery, on Middlesbrough Road and Milbank Street, South Bank, was badly damaged in an arson attack three years ago and a footpath around it remains closed off to the public because of safety concerns. Redcar and Cleveland Council has previously identified the property as adversely affecting the amenity of the neighbourhood and in January last year issued a planning enforcement notice which can require works to be carried out.
Planning documents recently published by the local authority said the owner had not been tracked down with the notice sent being returned by Royal Mail. The information referred to it being “case closed” as no further progress was able to be made.
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However in a statement, Councillor Lynn Pallister, the cabinet member for economic growth, said the search for the owner continued. The plight of the building was repeatedly raised at council meetings by former council leader and South Bank councillor Sue Jeffrey before she left the local authority prior to May’s local elections.
Mrs Jeffrey said she understood it had been agreed the matter be passed from planning to the council’s regeneration team, but to her knowledge also there had been no progress. She said the building had not been touched since the blaze and it was deemed too dangerous to re-open the footpath, which was now overgrown with weeds.
Mrs Jeffrey said it was an “important building on a prominent site” and the council had received external funding to tackle derelict buildings in other parts of the borough. She said: “It is about time similar cash was made available here so that this building can be made safe and the footpath cleared up and re-opened.
“There has been significant private investment in Middlesbrough Road in recent years, but until this building is sorted the area will never be brought back to what it should be.”
The ex-councillor said current South Bank ward member Neil Bendelow was also attempting to find a solution and the matter had been discussed at length at a recent community meeting.
In 2018 a London-based applicant applied to turn the property into a 16-room hostel with a café, but this was rejected by councillors. It has had a number of former uses including probation offices and a community centre.
Cllr Pallister said: “The council has repeatedly tried to find the owner of this building to explore ways we can improve the site for the benefit of the community. Whilst the search for the owner continues, we can look for external grant funding opportunities with the aim of bringing the building back into use.
“We also call on the Government to introduce tighter regulations to help councils across the country bring derelict buildings back into use in cases where property owners or landlords are absent.”
