Furious residents living on an ‘eyesore’ ghost street earmarked for demolition vowed they would ‘rather be shot’ than give up their beloved homes.
Council bulldozers are closing in on Third Street, in the former mining village of Horden, Co Durham, as part of a £6m masterplan to raze its 123-year-old terraces and replace them with modern housing.
But the last remaining locals still living on the semi-derelict street – where many of their neighbours’ homes are now crudely boarded up – have vowed to fight council attempts to acquire their homes.
They have accused town hall officials of ‘strong-arm tactics’ and ‘cheeky’ low-ball offers as they fight to protect the homes their families have cherished for decades.
Among those refusing to sell up are Moira Bellingham, 65, and her brother Ray, 67, siblings who have lived in their home for 59 years.
Surrounding by decades of family possessions, Moira said: ‘They would literally need to kill me to get me out of this house.
Furious residents living on an ‘eyesore’ ghost street earmarked for demolition vowed they would ‘rather be shot’ than give up their beloved homes
Council bulldozers are closing in on Third Street, in the former mining village of Horden, Co Durham, as part of a £6m masterplan to raze its 123-year-old terraces and replace them with modern housing
Among those refusing to sell up are Moira Bellingham, 65, and her brother Ray, 67, siblings who have lived in their home for 59 years
‘I’ve spent my whole life here and the memories I have are priceless. The council think they can just force us out, but they’ll have to drag me out of here. Shoot me, if they have to. That’s how much this place means to us.
‘It sounds a bit drastic but that’s the way we feel.
‘Even if they offered half a million, it wouldn’t make a difference. We’re not selling. This is our home, and I’m going to spend my last days here. They’ll have to carry me out in a box before I leave.’
Durham County Council plans to demolish around 80 houses – around half of which are empty – to rebuild the street ‘as a catalyst for the regeneration of the wider area’.
Homeowners have been made offers to sell up – and warned that if they refuse, the council will go to court to forcibly acquire them through so-called compulsory purchase orders.
Ray, who was nine when his parents bought their house on Third Street, said the council had offered half of the £70,000 value of his home. The average UK house price is £270,867.
He said: ‘You get your £30,000 and what do you do? You can’t buy another house for that. I’m almost 68, I can’t get a mortgage.
Durham County Council plans to demolish around 80 houses – around half of which are empty – to rebuild the street ‘as a catalyst for the regeneration of the wider area’
Homeowners have been made offers to sell up – and warned that if they refuse, the council will go to court to forcibly acquire them through so-called compulsory purchase orders
Chef Eva Halili, 41, says she has no intention of passing over her landlords details – despite neighbouring a boarded-up home
The town’s fortunes suffered when the coal mine shut in 1987 with the neighbouring homes becoming a magnet for anti-social behaviour
‘The council needs to realise what 59 years of us living in this house means to us. You can’t put a price on that. They could offer us £500,000 and we still wouldn’t take it.
‘People should have a right to stay in their homes if that is what they want.
‘But the council are tightening the thumbscrews. They make the derelict buildings look deliberately derelict. They drive the area down, the standards down, and they just force people out by applied pressure.
‘All the homeowners left in the street have made it clear they’re not selling.
‘We might not be successful but we won’t give up without a fight.
‘It doesn’t make any sense, there’s a lot of history in these houses. They were built in 1902 and they’re as solid. You can feel the history in every brick.
‘They want to tear them down and stick up a cheap new build that won’t last for half as long.’
Third Street sits among Horden’s historical ‘numbered streets’ built at the turn of the 20th century as pit homes for miners working at the nearby colliery.
However, the town’s fortunes suffered when the coal mine shut in 1987 with the neighbouring homes becoming a magnet for anti-social behaviour.
Now many properties on the numbered streets are long-abandoned and plastered with fake windows and doors to deter intruders.
Now many properties on the numbered streets are long-abandoned and plastered with fake windows and doors to deter intruders
Frank Whittaker, 53, is among Third Street residents coming together the fight council plans at community group meetings
Those renting have been sent letters by the local authority offering them £1,000 to provide the name of their landlord so acquisition discussions can begin
The council says that flattening the street will enable it to build fit-for-purpose modern housing that will attract families to the area.
Those renting have been sent letters by the local authority offering them £1,000 to provide the name of their landlord so acquisition discussions can begin.
Chef Eva Halili, 41, says she has no intention of passing over her landlords details – despite neighbouring a boarded-up home.
The mother-of-two moved from London with her children, aged 18 and 12, where she pays £700 rent for a deceptively large terraced home – having paid £2,200 each month for a small home in the capital.
She said: ‘We’ve been offered £1,000 if we tell the council who our landlords are, so they can negotiate with them. But there’s no way I’m willing to do that. They’re using bribery tactics to try and get us out.
‘It’s very wrong. There are people who have lived here for 60 years, it’s their family home. I moved here from London and I planned on this being a forever home. I love it here – we’re right by the beach and my kids love it. I spoke to my landlord and he promised me he has no intention of selling.
‘They just need to renovate the empty houses, a refresh. Why should I move and all the other people move out for them to come in with the bulldozers and build more expensive houses for other people to live in? It’s just not fair.’
Frank Whittaker, 53, is among Third Street residents coming together the fight council plans at community group meetings.
He bought his end-terrace home five years ago for around £60,000 and spent a further than £30,000 on renovations – including a modern kitchen and a tiled jacuzzi bathroom.
Under Durham council’s masterplan, town hall officials also want to acquire 58 neighbouring homes in Fifth Street to build a new housing estate
The council, now controlled by Reform UK, hopes demolition work could begin by 2026
Gardener Martin Copeland, 63, said volunteers are in limbo about where they will be moved to, and when
He faces making a loss of more than half that amount.
Mr Whittaker said: ‘I’ve spent a fortune fixing it up – new heating, electric, a proper roof, everything – because I plan to stay here for life.
‘Now they’re coming in saying they’ll offer between £32,000 and £38,000 for homes around here. I’ve spent £30,000 on doing up my house, and I know it’s worth far more.
‘If the were genuine, then they’d offer us fair amounts. If I’m left with £30,000 I can’t afford to buy another house.
‘This isn’t just about money. There are families here who’ve invested their lives in these homes. The council acts like the area is a wasteland, but we have a community – people who don’t want to leave, who’ve spent years building their lives here.’
‘They’re trying to make the place look abandoned. They board up empty houses with ugly sheets, making it seem derelict. It’s a tactic to scare people into selling. It’s total intimidation, but we’re not falling for it.
‘They know we’re not just going to roll over. We have a right to our homes and our community.’
Many landlords have abandoned Third Street, taking council cash to sell up and move on instead of watching the value of their investments fall.
One derelict house goes to auction this month with a starting price of £1 – though the estate agency listing warns of a ‘potential compulsory purchase order’.
Gloria Graveson, 78, has been offered £30,000 by the council for her three-bed terraced home, and is reluctantly accepting the deal following the recent death of her husband.
She said: ‘My husband always refused to move. There was no way he would consider it. We’d been here for 50 years.
‘But now it’s just me on my own, I can’t manage in a house this big.
‘I’m selling to the council but I’m not getting much – £30,000. I just spent £10,000 on a new roof.
‘People who take the money – they can’t afford to buy somewhere else. They can’t get a mortgage. So they’ll have to find money to rent instead.’
Many landlords have abandoned Third Street, taking council cash to sell up and move on instead of watching the value of their investments fall
One derelict house goes to auction this month with a starting price of £1 – though the estate agency listing warns of a ‘potential compulsory purchase order’
The community garden in Horden, a small allotment space in between a cluster of homes, also faces being closed down
The community garden in Horden, a small allotment space in between a cluster of homes, also faces being closed down.
Gardener Martin Copeland, 63, said volunteers are in limbo about where they will be moved to, and when.
He said he admired residents for standing up their homes but feared it was ‘too late’.
Mr Copeland said: ‘The whole street is deteriorating because all the landlords have sold up and moved on.
‘Other landlords are selling off their houses for as little as a pound.
‘No-one will get full value for them because the council has killed the area. No-one else would want to buy them so the council reckon they can pick them up for next to nothing.
‘The council should offer the residents an alternative property of equal value. That would be the fair thing to do. The council want to empty as many properties as they can until the last man’s standing and he’s got nowhere to turn.
‘It’s sad but all it’s all stacked against the residents.’
Under Durham council’s masterplan, town hall officials also want to acquire 58 neighbouring homes in Fifth Street to build a new housing estate.
The council, now controlled by Reform UK, hopes demolition work could begin by 2026.
Michael Kelleher, head of planning and housing at Durham County Council, said: ‘The Horden Masterplan has been subject to extensive consultation with residents and has received strong support.
‘The aim is to regenerate the village and improve life for local people by tackling issues such as the high number of empty homes in the Numbered Streets, while supporting those with housing needs and enhancing community facilities.
‘The acquisition of properties in Third and Fifth Street would pave the way for new council housing that will be truly affordable, alongside the provision of market housing.
‘We understand this is an unsettling time, and we are working closely with residents to negotiate the purchase of these properties.
‘We are also speaking to both owner occupiers and tenants to identify their housing needs and to support them to find suitable alternative accommodation.
‘We have appointed an independent firm to undertake property valuations in line with the RICS Red Book Valuation approach, which is widely recognised as a standard approach to valuation.
‘Tpas, a tenant engagement specialist, has also been appointed to provide residents with additional advice and support.
‘We are also developing a planning application for demolition and replacement housing in the Numbered Streets Third and Fifth Street area that we are hoping to share with local residents in the coming weeks, with a view to considering any feedback and submitting a proposal later this year.’
