RESIDENTS in the Somerton area of Newport are concerned their beloved homes may be knocked down as part of plans to regenerate their area.

Newport City Homes (NCH) is planning an extensive series of works in the area - which could see existing houses demolished and replaced with new ones.

The plans are yet to be finalised, but many residents are concerned about the impact of the work, and a number of Facebook groups have been set up to discuss the proposals, along with a petition calling for any demolitions to be called off.

Raqaia Mahmood, a resident who set up the petition, said: "A lot the houses near me have been here since 1880, they're all red brick houses, they were never ex-council houses. 

"So they've just drawn a plan by the looks of it, or had their architects draw a plan, incorporating all of what would have been the old Somerton farm estate."

South Wales Argus:

Houses in Myrtle Grove (1 to 12) are also amongst those that will be affected by plans from Newport City Homes. Picture: Google Maps.

NCH has said four options are being considered regarding regeneration in Somerton:

  • Option one: Take no action
  • Option two: Refurbishing existing homes - this option is identified as being quite expensive.
  • Option three: Building new homes - this would include demolishing existing homes.
  • Option four: A mix of new homes and refurbishment - this would involve demolishing some of the existing homes, while refurbishing others.

A NCH spokeswoman said: "Our preferred option is to build new homes and regenerate the Somerton community.

"However, we recognise that not all homes will be suitable for regeneration, so we’ll also be looking at refurbishment for some of the affected area."

When asked what homes are being considered for demolition, and NCH spokeswoman said: "Our consultation so far has been on which option to take forward for more detailed work, and not on the final plans for Somerton.

"This also means that as our work is at such an early stage, we don’t have detailed plans."

But Ms Mahmood claims the decision has effectively already been made.

She said: "They've just included all of those properties, they're going to knock it all straight down and they just want to rebuild it, but they're not being clear as to what they're offering.

"There are homes that have got problems but those problems were caused by bad contractors going in and doing shoddy work, which has led to damp issues in quite a number of properties. 

"But if you were a private homeowner and you paid for shoddy work you would either sue that contractor or you would get it rectified some way, you wouldn't expect the public purse to be paying for your bad judgement.

"People are coming out of Covid restrictions are going straight into this other nightmare where they think that they're going to lose their home by Christmas.

"I know that that's not really going to happen but that's the fear that, that, that is out there at the moment, because they're not given a clear timeline."

The petition asks for NCH to consider only doing refurbishment work and halting any plans to demolish houses.

"This petition we're hoping to put through to the Welsh (Parliament)and Newport City Council," said Ms Mahmood.

"Newport City Homes can have sight of it.

"I think the people of Newport need to know that it is their money that is being spent on this project.

"They are throwing money at something that doesn't need doing. I mean they need to fix their houses but it's their houses, their issues, their problems that they created."

South Wales Argus:

Palm Square is another area that may be affected by plans to demolish houses. Picture: Google Maps.

When the Argus asked NCH what improvements would be carried out if homes were to be demolished, a spokeswoman replied: "All new homes we build will be well designed, energy efficient and embrace new technology and construction methods to reduce their carbon footprint.

"They’ll also be well connected to their wider surroundings to promote sustainable and active travel.

"We do not have defined plans for our future work but we would use the principles above to inform any regeneration work."

NCH have sent out employees in the area to get feedback from residents and to inform them of plans going forward, but there remains confusion over what is happening.

Fears amongst residents have been stoked by reports of people pretending to be NCH employees going around the houses and telling people that their home will definitely be demolished. 

NCH said that they have had several reports from residents regarding this and have asked local representatives to distribute information on how to know if someone is a legitimate representative.

NCH have said that all of their employees going door to door carry ID cards and have asked people to check these or to call them if they are unsure if who they are speaking to is a genuine employee or contractor.

Some private residents are worried that they will be forced to sell their homes via a compulsory purchase order (CPO).

NCH do not have that power unless granted to them by the Welsh Government and are adamant that there are no plans for a CPO underway.

They said that "All homeowners would have significant notice of any CPO activity taking place, as this would only be used as a last resort."

There has been a survey conducted by NCH to get the opinion of residents on the plans that received a 34 per cent response rate with 111 people responding.

Opinions were decidedly mixed, with the only clear preference being against doing no work at all in the area.

However, some have called into question the veracity of the survey, with some private residents claiming that they were not contacted about this.

A NCH spokeswoman said: "All affected homes could take part in our consultation.

"However, we have only done home condition surveys on NCH properties."

South Wales Argus:

The odd numbered houses from 9 to 31 on Somerton Road will be affected if plans to rebuild houses are pursued. Picture: Google Maps.

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Ms Mahmood has been left frustrated by what she feels is a very one-sided debate.

"We just don't have any forum," said Ms Mahmood.

"You know not everybody's on Facebook or whatever - how are they supposed to be heard?

"So it's been very one sided.

"It is just whatever they, they're deciding, they're just go in with that".

A NCH spokeswoman said: “We are focussing our next phase of work on building new homes and regeneration.

"However, we recognise that not all homes will be suitable for regeneration, so we’ll also be looking at refurbishment for some of the affected area.

“This decision was based on community feedback as well as in depth surveys which assessed the condition of typical homes in Somerton.   

“Our survey of local residents has shown there are mixed views about the work we are doing – some people have told us they want us to build new homes whereas others do not want to be part of a regeneration scheme. We’re committed to considering all these views as we progress our work.

“We’ve learned a lot through our consultation to date so we’ll continue to talk to local people, including NCH residents and private homeowners.

"This is helping us better understand community connections, such as families who want to continue to live close to each other. We’ll do all we can to support these connections in our future plans.”

Here are the houses that would be affected by a rebuild

  • Acacia Avenue 1-12 (all), 14, 16, 18, 20
  • Springfield, Acacia Avenue
  • The Grove, Acacia Avenue
  • Myrtle Grove 1-12 (all)
  • Acacia Square 1-12 (all)
  • Poplar Road 1-8 (all)
  • Laburnum Drive 2–104 (even numbers only)
  • Laburnum Drive 1,3,5,7 (odds)
  • Sycamore Avenue 1-84, 86, 88, 90, 92
  • Hawthorne Avenue 1-11 (odd numbers only)
  • Hawthorne Avenue 12-60 (all)
  • Linden Road 2-20 (even numbers)
  • Somerton Crescent 1-8 (all)
  • Ashley Road 1-16 (all)
  • Palm Square 1-13, 15 (all)
  • Liberneth Road 2-10 (even numbers), 11-17 (all), 19–33 (odds), 33a
  • Hawthorne Fosse 1-12 (all)
  • Hawthorne Square 1-12 (all)
  • 10 Aberthaw Road
  • Somerton Road 9-31 (odd numbers only)

If you are affected by this and would like to talk to us about it, please email newsdesk@southwalesargus.co.uk