AS of November of this year, myself and my partner will have been resident in The Lovells for three years.
At the time of signing our agreement at the local office in Little London we were invited to view the proposed plans for the area pinned up on the office wall for public inspection. They looked good – decent landscaping, improved street lighting, but
also the hope of an economical bathroom and double glazing. The prospects looked good.
Three years on, and after endless consultations, nothing has been done apart from leaving the Lovell tenants in confusion and limbo. We are now removed from the proposed PFI plans – a blessing in my opinion – and to all intents and purposes placed on the back burner.
We still retain the cast iron bath suite, single glazed, wooden framed windows, some in a dangerous state of repair, and a central heating system dating from the early 1980s, costing a small fortune to turn on and possibly the last major investment by the Council for The Lovells.
Security is laughable – doors with no handles, electronic locks vandalized, CCTV cameras hanging by their wires, pointing at blank walls. Flats are left vacant with door frames falling from their mountings, an open invitation to squatters and drug abusers.
Sanitation is at a basic level, I've lost count of the number of times I've called for an emergency plumber, rats, mice, silver fish, and now cockroaches infest the premises.
Pavements, steps, street furniture, and parking areas are a disgrace.
I've seen better maintained municipal areas in rural South East Asia.
And two recycling bins between three blocks of flats is a joke.
We were promised yet another consultation at the time of the last local elections back in May of this year – still nothing.
Is anybody within the Council able to shed any light on the future of these three blocks of flats or are we, the tenants, to remain as I have mentioned on the back burner and in constant limbo?
A prompt reply would be most welcome, and yes, myself and my partner both work for Leeds City Council, so we are not just paying tenants but also work colleagues.
D R Youd, Lovell Park Grange, Sheepscar, Leeds
