Frustrated at a lack of action over empty buildings in his eyeline from his city centre office a Preston business owner has begun clean-up action.
Chief executive of Delta Innovation Group Joe Hart has begun to secure the long-empty and vandalised Lanson House and College House exteriors which face him each day.
Working in OneCoWork, which was extensively renovated last year, Mr Hart says he regularly sees break-ins, discarded rubbish and more left strewn just yards from the offices he and the team work in and where they park their cars.
Read more: The In-Between Places – what ten empty Preston city centre buildings could become
He said: “For me it was this suitcase that just summed it up.
“Abandoned on a strip of land since September last year. The contents of it left everywhere. No one bats an eyelid or wants to take responsibility for cleaning up.”
Mr Hart, who used some of the volunteering days he receives as part of his job, took a few hours to start making security improvements – resetting pulled away slats – and lugging rubbish into a skip.
He said: “Yes, there is a risk in doing this myself but I am so fed up of seeing these buildings decay and being unsecured.
“The owners have a responsibility. The council should be forcing the issue with them, as should be the police. I’ve had enough and I want to invest, I want Preston to grow. I am eyeing up a property to move my business into nearby as we are growing.
“But I will not do that, and we’re talking a six-figure investment in bringing an empty building back into use, until the people who do own these buildings show a bit of care and attention.”
Mr Hart said he has had correspondence and conversations with council officers and the police after reporting break-ins at the buildings over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend.
He said: “Officers came down and we spoke, I had already chased the youths off by then. I shouted and they bolted very swiftly out of the building.
“It’s out of concern more than anything. There’s old needles, broken glass, nails, all sorts someone could fall onto or catch themselves on.
“These kids will be bored, I’m sure, but it is dangerous and it needs to be stopped.
“The vibe I got from the council and police when I told them how I was cleaning up and doing things myself was well done, someone needs to. That’s fine but I do think it is disappointing, it shouldn’t be left to concerned people like me to clear up what is someone else’s responsibility.”
Preston Police confirmed they were called on Easter Monday (21 April) to reports of children in the car park of Lanson House and windows being smashed.
Officers attended at 6.51pm and found no one at the property.
A spokesperson for police said: “Those who choose to trespass in these buildings are putting themselves at risk of serious injury because dangerous structures within can become unstable and could collapse.
“We would ask parents to remind their children that by entering these buildings, they are putting themselves at risk of serious harm.”
Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw told Blog Preston when asked what was being done to tackle safety concerns in empty buildings said: “Anti-social behaviour and criminal damage are completely unacceptable. I fully support Lancashire Constabulary’s Op Centurion initiative, which aims to address these issues in Preston and across Lancashire.
“Through my Community Fund, which will be opening again soon, I offer grants to support local projects and activities designed to divert and tackle anti-social behaviour. I encourage bids from the Preston area to help address these concerns, in collaboration with the local policing team.”
Mr Hart said he was comfortable taking a risk in cleaning up the land around the buildings as his background is in fire safety and structural engineering.
His firm works on large government contracts around designing and securing buildings.
Concerns about Lanson House and Edith Rigby House are long-held, Blog Preston reported last summer on growing numbers of break-ins and vandalism at Lanson House raised by neighbouring businesses.
And a campaign group continues to lobby for a new use to be found for College House – which was home to suffragette Edith Rigby – after extensive weather damage due to the building being consistently exposed to the elements.
Blog Preston approached Preston City Council for comment about concerns raised by Mr Hart and previously about other empty buildings in and around the area.
A spokesperson said: “There are currently no planning enforcement issues relating to Lanson House. While it is included on our list of vacant buildings being monitored, it is not considered a top priority as it does not hold historic status. A multi-agency task force has been established to oversee Preston’s empty buildings and ensure private owners are held accountable for the condition of their properties.
“Our long-term aim is to encourage owners to bring their buildings back into use, or if they are unable to do so, to sell them to developers willing to invest in and restore the properties.
“In the meantime, our community safety team carries out regular patrols in the area and works closely with the police when required. The Council has also taken action to require the owners to secure the building, though it remains an ongoing challenge due to persistent intruders.”
Council pressed on whether ‘task force’ is working and whether enforcement action is being used
The issue of the city’s heritage buildings, and concerns about them being targeted and left empty, was raised at a recent full council meeting of Preston City Council.
Conservative Rural East councillor Stephen Whittam – who had clearly been reading Blog Preston’s extensive coverage and report from the January heritage public meeting – asked the cabinet member responsible Cllr Valerie Wise for an update during the Thursday 17 April meeting.
He said: “Interest in that specific issue is increasing and feelings are hardening out there about a lack of action.
“There was talk of interested groups meeting and working together. We put into budget amendment a full-time heritage officer but that was defeated, as officers pick it up as and when instead.
“You said in January you were looking at taking enforcement action, have you taken any enforcement action to date?
Cllr Wise: “We have a task group – an officer and member group, we also have a group which heritage groups come to it. We’ve had first meeting. And we’ve also attended meeting of officers and external legal advisors – so if we are taking enforcement action.
“We share your concerns and we discussed several entries by people, into one of them College House and there was somewhere on Avenham. We are really concerned about that – and we have been in contact with social services because one of the people involved is a young person.
“We are concerned not just about damage being done but also from a safety perspective.”
Cllr Wise went on to say she wouldn’t list enforcement action taken at the meeting but would respond in writing to Cllr Whittam with a detailed report.
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