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137
I laid these facts before the owner and informed him that unless
he was prepared to carry out extensive repairs it would be necessary
to close the premises under Part II. of the Housing Act. The
owner selected to repair, and works were carried out and completed
in 1903.
Area E is a square of property bounded by York Road,
Ironmonger Row, Lever Street, and Hull Street, the outside of the
square consisting of about 30 houses. Inside the square of property
stood eleven cottages and a ginger-beer factory. The cottages
constituted Garden Court and Charles Court, entered by narrow
passages from Hull Street. All the houses in this property were
old and worn out, with many defects, but particularly was this true
of the two small courts. These, with the ginger-beer factory, were
also unsatisfactory in that they prevented light aud air gaining
access to the backs of the houses facing the outer sides of the
square. These facts were laid before the owners of the property,
and arrangements were come to by which the whole of the property
is to be rebuilt in the course of two or three years. But in order
to improve the houses on the outside of the square at once, the
inside of the square was to be cleared during 1903. The owners
fulfilled their contract with me, and these eleven cottages (population
81) were closed and demolished during 1903. The operations
were completed and the ground inside the square cleared by
July 21st, 1903.
Area F is that of Collier Place, Pentonville, N. I inspected
this area and examined every house in 1901, and 1 then laid before
the owners the facts as to its insanitary condition. Collier Place
itself consisted of a court, entered from Collier Street by an archway.
The court contained 12 cottages of two rooms each. They were all
worn-out dilapidated houses, defective in almost every particular.
Some of the cottages were practically back-to-back houses
The drainage was defective. The walls, floors, roofs, windows
and stairs were defective. The yards to some of the houses were
extremely small and ill-paved. The sanitary conveniences in these
yards were in a bad state. The houses were damp, dark and
insanitary. The occupants of the Place numbered 33 adults and
children ; total, 48.