Facelifts for 102 terraced houses in Burnley

12:15pm Monday 1st December 2008

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PLANS to provide more than 100 Burnley homes with a ‘facelift’ are set to be rubber-stamped by councillors.

Work will be done to improve the external appearance of 102 terraced houses in the Duke Bar and Burnley Wood areas.

It is part of the Elevate regeneration scheme which will see housing bosses at Burnley Council renovate 2,270 disused homes.

Councillors are poised to approve plans for the latest part of the scheme, dubbed the Empty Homes Strategy, at a meeting of the executive on December 8.

Martin Smith, executive member for regeneration and economic development, said the plans to ‘clean up’ the homes was ‘really good news.’ He said: “We’ve brought money forward for next year’s programme, so we are able to do some extra homes sooner, which is much better.”

Once the proposals are given the go-ahead, the properties, in Barden Lane, Newman Street, Villiers Street, Hollingreave Road, Parliament Street and Sefton Terrace, will be cleaned up and re-pointed.

To date Burnley Council has spent £8 million on around 1,000 properties across town.

A report to the executive says: “The treatment of the terraces have aesthetically enhanced key gateways and thoroughfares in the town giving a more fresher and vibrant impression of the streets as opposed to the rundown appearance.”

It is hoped the scheme will assist in raising property values and stabilising the housing market in the areas.

Rosehill with Burnley Wood ward Coun Frank Ashworth, said the work was not enough. He added: “It would be good news if everything else wasn’t going down the plug hole.

“It’s fine facelifting homes, but what we really need is new homes, but no one wants to build any.”