Several residents have asked for an update on the unsightly barriers outside the Nat West Bank on the corner of Stephen Road and London Road. David and I have been investigating the cause of the delay in mending the pavements there following damage by tree roots. We were also concerned about a water leakage from the building onto the pavement next to the cash machines which was freezing in the bitterly cold weather and causing a safety hazard for residents.

The owners of the property went into receivership in November 2009. The receivers have been appointed and David and I are in contact with their London-based agents.

The agents claim not to have been aware of various leaks from the building until January of this year following an intervention by the County Highways Dept at our request, however this is disputed by their tenants, and it is possible that there has been a communications problem.

We are informed by the agents that they have attended to the leakage issues and the guttering. Their contracter checked the premises earlier this month, and reported back to say that the only remaining piece of equipment requiring repair or maintenance is the air conditioning unit, and that as this had been installed by the tenant, it was deemed to be the responsibility of Nat West.

We also understand that a late decision has been made by the receivers that a sum of money can be allocated towards the repair of the pavement outside the Nat West on their private property. We have put the agent in touch with the County officer who is leading on the London Road redevelopment,  as it is the receivers’ intention to try and ‘buy into’ the pavement rebuild which is about to be carried out by the County’s contractors later in the year. We hope that they can come to an arrangement on this very soon.

One complication here will be the trees on that stretch of pavement – if replaced, the roots will continue to cause damage to the pavement surface, and the County planning officers are keen to see them replaced with trees of a more manageable size in line with the design proposals of the London Road redevelopment scheme. It is possible that the trees currently growing there may have Tree Preservation Orders on them, so we have given the contact details of the City Council’s Tree Officer to the agent for the receivers so that she can find out whether this is the case – if so, the correct planning application procedures will need to be followed.

Let’s hope it won’t be too long before the unsightly barriers disappear!