AS bulldozers carry out demolition in Moston, councillors claim the "mayhem" caused by private landlords will be smashed with as much force.
Regeneration work has seen buildings in the Ashley Lane area being knocked down since April.
Harpurhey councillor Pat Karney said: "This is the start of building a new Moston we can all be proud of.
"These properties were declared unfit by government inspectors. Many were let go into severe decline by unscrupulous private landlords who took advantage of the law, which has now been changed."
Selective licensing legislation gives local authorities powers to selectively license privately rented properties and clamp down on landlords who do not maintain high standards.
Moston councillor Paul Murphy said: "I have lived in the area most of my life and have seen the damage done by private landlords. Thankfully the law has changed and we can tackle the mayhem that they caused.
"We now have plans to build hundreds of family homes on this site.
"I have been waiting for this demolition for years. It gives us a fantastic opportunity to put in place a great future for Moston."
The compulsory purchase order area, which consists of 224 properties, was declared in February 2006 in response to concerns from residents and councillors about deteriorating property conditions, increasing numbers of empty homes and plummeting property prices.
These obsolete properties are being demolished and the site will be redeveloped with what the council describe as "high quality, family housing for sale".
The first phase of demolition – covering 94 properties – is still underway. All residents in the first phase have found alternative accommodation.
A council spokesman said: "The Kingsley Avenue area CPO is just one element of the overall housing strategy for the area which has seen substantial improvements to retained housing.
"It is a strategy which is meeting with real results. Since 2002 we have seen the value of terraced housing in the area increase by more than 200 per cent and the number of empty properties in the area substantially decreased."
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MICHAEL BROWN, moston (02/06/2008 at 10:29)
Mr Murphy/ Mr Karney
I feel your comments in the advertiser blaming the demise of Moston on private landlords as unfair. Although I agree that there are some landlords that are unscrupulous I also know there are very good private landlords. I am the owner of Brentwood Lettings which is the first Letting Agent / Landlord accredited to Manchester City Council and we have invested heavily in the area modernising the properties and then renting them out. We have spent plenty of time working with the council to help homeless families and benefit claimants find suitable accommodation. We work with rentwise and other agencies within the council to a mutual benefit. I also feel at a time when Manchester City Councils housing strategy committee is looking for ways to work closer with private landlords your words could have been chosen with a little more care.
Whilst the investment in Moston by the council is most welcome there are also some council efforts in the past that has also contributed to the demise of Moston however it is more productive to look to the future and learn from the mistakes of the past. It would be nice to hear more positive comments from councillors concerning the contribution of private landlords to the housing needs of the community rather than a continued blinkered opinion blaming private landlords for being the only people responsible for the areas problems of the past.
I look forward to your reply and would welcome and consider contributing to more positive press in the near future
Regards
Mike Brown