Sponsored by
The ugly side of Aylesbury
A survey of derelict buildings in Aylesbury shows how the recession is leading to 'patches of decay' in the town centre.
The Aylesbury Society's list reveals a large number of imposing eyesores which are blighting their surroundings.
The report's scope was confined to sites with derelict buildings awaiting demolition and those that have been cleared but not redeveloped or turned over to some temporary use, with Aylesbury's many empty shops not included.
Yet Roger King, honorary secretary of the Aylesbury Society, said it still found a surprising amount of eyesores.
"The funny thing is some of them I had wrongly thought had already been built on but they are still derelict sites," he said.
The survey says one of the 'worst blighted stretches' is the south side of New Street, starting with the back of the old Odeon cinema then an office building, Sloane House, and the former telephone exchange, both of which are boarded up.
To the north, off Buckingham Road, is the former TRW components factory, awaiting demolition, while in Walton Street Ringwood House is another boarded up office block.
The report, written by Aylesbury Society committee member Peter Gasson, continues: "In Stocklake many of the buildings are shabby units surviving from the 1960s, but at least they seem to be mostly in use.
"Not so, however, a patch of industrial wasteland between Osier Way and the canal, visible from behind the Tring Road Tesco."
Mr King said: "I think some of the sites are waiting for the finance– with Ringwood House, I think there was an application before the recession to build houses and it must have fizzled out."
He said developers should be encouraged to 'actually come in and do something because it does not look good'.
"Particularly on an entrance into the town on a ring road people see these buildings," he added.
"We want something that will look good and encourage people to come in and shop."
Mr Gasson concludes: "(If) the recession is as bad as the more pessimistic forecasts suggest, the situation could well get worse, not better."
Top 10 Eyesores in Aylesbury
1. Old Odeon, Cambridge Street.
2. Sloane House, New Street.
3. TRW components factory, Buckingham Road.
4. Former TA Centre, Oxford Road.
5. Former Kerry site, Gatehouse Road.
6. Empty parts of the Gatehouse Quarter, Gatehouse Rd.
7. Ringwood House, Walton Street.
8. Maxwell Pool, Exchange Street.
9. Industrial wasteland, Osier Way.
10.Empty plots in Mill Street.
See also: Aylesbury's beautiful side.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Aylesbury
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
