Unpacking Blackpool Council's plans to 'take control' of empty properties blighting town
PLUS: Our recommendations for the week ahead in Blackpool
Hello and welcome to The Blackpool Lead.
Today we report in-depth of council plans to acquire empty properties - and therefore resolve some longstanding concerns and grievances from people who live in the area.
Some of these powers would only be used as a last resort - with owners given the chance to bring the property into use themselves - and the powers themselves are nothing new.
What is new, however, is the intention for Blackpool Council to use the powers to their full extent.
Council could force sale of empty properties causing issues across Blackpool
By Michael Holmes
Town hall bosses plan to “take control” of empty properties in Blackpool - and could even force their sale, documents have revealed.
The council’s new “strategy for bringing properties back into use” outlines ambitions to cut the number of long-term empty buildings, which “can be disproportionately impactful in our communities”.
The authority says: “Long-term empty properties can become a significant issue, leading to community complaints, use of resources to attempt to address and resolve issues and can be a magnet for anti-social behaviour.”
Last year, there were around 1,500 empty homes in Blackpool - about 2.2% of the resort’s private housing stock - with a “small percentage” not coming back “into use in a timely way”.
Just under a third of the known empty properties last year were thought to have been vacant for more than two years, The Blackpool Lead understands.
The council said it “receives regular communication about empty business premises”, adding: “These are monitored and reports made on empty retail, restaurants etc properties in and around the town centre area, but the council also has regular reports of other businesses, including hotels, partially completed residential refurbishments and developments of multiple dwellings and hospitality venues across the town that are a concern within the community.”
The strategy, which was shown off to and adopted by councillors at a meeting last month and will be in place until 2030, shows that the council intends to:
Use council tax records, housing surveys and community reports to keep an up-to-date database of homes, which will be categorised as short- or long-term empty and have reasons for their emptiness;
Consider grants and low-interest loans and tax relief for property owners to get their buildings back into use;
Use empty dwelling management orders (EDMOs) to take control of properties “that have been vacant for an extended period and bring them back into use” or compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) “as a last result … to acquire long-term empty properties and redevelop them for housing”;
Partner with housing associations to “refurbish and manage empty homes, turning them into affordable housing” and to “involve local communities in identifying empty homes and developing solutions” and “encourage community-led housing projects”; and
Run information campaigns to “inform property owners about the negative impacts of empty homes and the benefits of bringing them back into use” and to “share success stories of properties that have been successfully brought back into use to inspire other owners”.
Papers say: “A key part of the effective delivery of this strategy will be ensuring that the council uses the tools at its disposal across the enforcement landscape well, and consistently well, to achieve the desired outcome.
“When support to a property owner is unsuccessful in progressing the management of an empty property, the collective use of the right powers to address the concerns need to be orchestrated to ensure that the owner is compelled to take action and meet their responsibilities.
“Where they remain unwilling to do so, a clear progression through the right enforcement approach will mean that the council will be able to address the concern directly and in a timely way, through means including CPOs and EDMOs.”
While CPOs could see the council buy properties without their owners’ consent - as is happening now on the site of the proposed Multiversity near Sainsbury’s in the town centre and not without, at the very least, causing stress for those affected - EDMOs would allow the authority to take over the management of empty homes “with a view to agreeing with owners a plan to bring them back into occupation”, guidance issued by the government says.
“There are many reasons why properties fall empty and in most cases they are returned to occupation after a short time,” it says, echoing the council’s report.
“However, properties that are left empty for long periods can have a detrimental effect on the local environment and devalue neighbouring properties.
“They also represent a lost opportunity in areas where demand for housing is high and housing supply is inadequate.
“The government believes that boarding up long-term empty properties to prevent them being broken into by squatters, vandals, drug dealers and arsonists is not a sustainable solution.
“The only effective answer is to get them back into occupation and in that way help to meet housing need where appropriate.”
EDMOs should be used as a “last resort”, the guidance says, “where the council has been unable to persuade the owner to bring the property back into use”.
They cannot be used on homes empty for less than six months or where the owner is working away or being cared for - or caring for someone - away from home.
They cannot be used on second or holiday homes, buildings in the process of being sold or let, or those going through probate - or where probate was obtained within the previous six months.
The council will not be able to make an EDMO without approval from an independent property tribunal.
While the powers are not new, they have not been used by Blackpool Council in relation to empty properties before, it is understood.
An authority spokesperson said: “The working group for the action plan will be seeking to engage with the owners of the empty properties and work with them to come to a resolution.
“That may include the use of CPO and/or EDMOs but (they) will only be used when all other efforts with property owners have been exhausted and where there is evidence that failure to act is impacting on the community around the property.”
Cllr Paula Burdess, the council’s community safety, street scene and neighbourhoods boss, said: “In our town there are some properties, residential and business, that are not being used for their intended purpose and have been empty for some time.
“These properties can be a blight on Blackpool’s communities and cause issues such as being eyesores, unsafe, and in safe cases magnets for anti-social behaviour, leading to community complaints.
“Our new strategy offers a more joined-up approach to tackling this situation and through engaging with stakeholders such as local business groups, community groups and the property owners themselves we can bring more of these properties back in to use.
“We have several goals which include minimising issues like vandalism and lack of security, improving the appearance of our neighbourhoods and increasing the housing and business premises supply.
“We are also aiming to reduce debt such as council tax accumulated on such properties so that it is available to invest in services to support our residents.”
How the scheme will work
When the council is told about a property that is - or appears to be - empty, it will try to contact its owner “to understand barriers to bringing (it) back into use and offer tailored advice”.
The authority’s report said this “will be a simple process”, though it admits that “ownership can be very complex and sometimes opaque”, particularly in buildings that house bedsits.
It says: “When the owner is identified and their contact address and associated details known, we will write to them both to offer information about where they can access practical support and assistance to bringing their property in to use if they need it, and challenge to ensure they understand their responsibilities to maintain the property and safeguard it against becoming a blight.”
Public awareness campaigns will be launched, and the council will work with other authorities to “ensure that we learn from good practice that has a positive impact”.
Town hall chiefs will also look at working with housing providers and developers “interested in bringing empty properties back in to use to ensure that they are able to support this strategy where owners are not able to bring the property back in to use without support”.
But “key” to the scheme will be the ability to implement enforcement measures, documents say.
They add: “When support to a property owner is unsuccessful in progressing the management of an empty property, the collective use of the right powers to address the concerns need to be orchestrated to ensure that the owner is compelled to take action and meet their responsibilities.
“Where they remain unable or unwilling to do so, a clear progression through the right enforcement approach will mean that the council will be able to address the concern directly and in a timely way, through means including a compulsory purchase order and empty dwelling management orders.”
Put simply, the council says it will use the carrot approach first - before using the stick if that does not work.
We’re delighted to say Cosy Homes in Lancashire is supporting independent, in-depth journalism in Lancashire by sponsoring The Blackpool Lead and The Lancashire Lead. Discover how they can help you improve energy efficiency in your home and keep it warmer.
Blackpool Council CPO powers report published
The compulsory purchase order giving Blackpool Council power to clear the site needed for the £65m multiversity has now been published.
The order was granted on January 30th by an independent planning inspector following a public inquiry last November and December.
It lists properties in Cookson Street. Milbourne Street, Charles Street and George Street which the council needs to acquire in order to assemble the remaining 20 per cent of the site.
Council documents setting out the details of the CPO say “whilst efforts to negotiate acquisitions will continue, the council is now in a position to execute the compulsory purchase powers to acquire the outstanding interests.”
The order includes permission “to proceed with the publication and serving of the statutory notice of confirmation of the Compulsory Purchase Order”.
It also enables the council: “Where appropriate, to continue to negotiate for the voluntary acquisition of any remaining property, and to continue to negotiate compensation.
“Where necessary, to take such steps as are necessary to secure vacant possession of the properties needed for the Multiversity development, including (but not limited to) instructing the sheriff.”
The best things to do in Blackpool from 17 February...
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to The Blackpool Lead to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.