I have received a number of complaints recently about the poor condition of the former Breathless club (formerly the Blackhall Royal British Legion) behind the Co-op store in Blackhall Colliery and I thought an update on progress would be useful.
I have been working for some time now with the clerk of the parish council (through the parish environment committee) to trace the owner of the property. The county council's planning enforcement section has now made contact with the owner and has asked that the building be made secure and brought back to a decent standard of repair. The county council is legally obliged to give the owner sufficient time to deal with this request and if the owner fails to comply within this time the council has the option of taking further legal action to force the owner to take any measures necessary.
I appreciate that this can be a frustrating process for the community given the legalities involved but I have been assured that the council will take action at the appropriate time allowed by law. In the meantime I will continue to work with the parish clerk to apply pressure to bring this property back to a decent and safe standard of repair as soon as possible.
If you area aware of any similar properties in our area please let me know:
