173 Highbury Quadrant

A FOUR-STOREY council house building that was emptied of its tenants has been listed for sale by the Town Hall after sitting vacant for 10 years.

Residents from four council flats were moved out of 173 Highbury Quadrant in 2016 so that the building could be converted into energy-efficient council homes as part of what neighbours call an “overly-ambitious” project.

But the work was continuously postponed, stalled and delayed, meaning that the property has been empty ever since, and remains shrouded in scaffolding and graffiti whilst it walls crumble.

Now the council has approved its sale alongside 13 other sites, on the basis that the project is “no longer viable”.

Kelly Webb-Lamb, who lives next-door to the property, said it was “scandalous” that the council had allowed the building to sit empty for so long.

“It’s literally been sitting empty for 10 years, just falling apart. That’s the thing that really makes me cross, is that they’ve just left it. It wasn’t a wreck, but it is now,” she said. “It feels like a total tragedy to me in a borough that has a proper housing crisis – you’ve got this huge property sitting there empty when there’s so many people that need homes.”

Kelly Webb-Lamb

Neighbours have been writing to the council for years about the derelict site, asking for transparency and clarification as to why the project was abandoned but have been unable to attain a clear answer.

Ms Webb-Lamb said she thought it was better for the houses to get some usage after a sale rather than to sit as an “empty wreck”, but said the past 10 years had been a “fiasco”.

She has been supported by Highbury Ward Green Party councillor Benali Hamdache, whose group have criticised the Labour group’s decision to sell-off the land.

Speaking to the Tribune, he said: “I’ve been involved in Islington politics for over a decade, and as long as I can remember the development of this site has been on the cards. The council, and everyone involved, haven’t delivered, and we’re now at the very sad position where the site is being sold off.”

Cllr Paul Convery, finance chief, said: “There was originally a plan to redevelop this house for a mix of council flats subsidised by a home for private sale. How­ever, this is now financially unviable due to structural problems which required urgent under-pinning. The redevelopment also got stalled by legal problems and has also been hit by the rapid rise in construction costs.

“We have, in recent years, built over 600 modern new council homes by converting unused garages and undercroft spaces on estates, and refurbishing existing buildings where it is cost effective to do so.

“After establishing there were no other viable uses for the property, the best outcome is to sell it and use the proceeds to support the purchase of ex-Right-To-Buy flats elsewhere in the borough, accommodating people in desperate need on our housing waiting list.”