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84
City there are small groups of houses which have been alluded to in the
past as approaching the end of their useful life. Those properties in the
first instance, perhaps a hundred years ago, were constructed cheaply and
without much regard to enduring stability and are now showing serious defects
in structure. There is no doubt that the increase in the volume and
weight of traffic on the unyielding surface of modern roads causes almost
continuous vibration, and this has been the main factor in affecting the
fabric of these old dwellings. They were built in an era of slow-moving
horse vehicles; the advent of a heavy traction-engine in those days was a
rare occurrence and one which excited the interest of both young and old.
The road surfaces then were composed superficially of hard core and sand
and were to some extent compressible and absorbed impact. Nowadays,
the shock of impact travels laterally from the incompressible road surface
in waves of vibration which are communicated to the foundations of
buildings, particularly when streets are somewhat narrow. Thus in
an area like Westminster, signs of settlement in old buildings may prove
a greater problem in the future than it is at present.
Some of the dwellings which have been affected are of the cottage
type. The brick work, when exposed, shows little evidence of being
built in proper bond, the bricks are of poor substance and appear insufficiently
fired, and the mortar is of doubtful composition. Apart from
traffic vibration, it is evident that it was never intended that these
structures should be of an enduring character. In the natural course of
development and rebuilding of a district they would have been swept
away long ago, but these changes have been arrested by the operation of
the Rent Restrictions Acts. Unless "suitable" alternative accommodation
can be found for the tenants, these old dwelling-houses will continue
as anachronisms in the Westminster of the present day.
During the year some 19 working-class dwellings were certified as
dangerous structures. The certificate may not in the first instance imply
that the building must be demolished. It is only in default of
"repairing" or "securing" that demolition is resorted to. There
are, however, certain cases where the structure may be so unstable that
demolition is the one and only safe course to adopt. Some owners of old
house property do not consider it economically sound to incur considerable
and perhaps unprofitable costs in making old properties secure. If, then,
the District Surveyor's notice is not complied with, he takes legal
proceedings to enforce it. In nearly all cases this means the gradual
demolition of the property by the official contractors, the cost of
demolition being chargeable to the owners. Thus it is that in some areas
where development and improvement have been delayed by reason of the
Rent Restrictions Acts, the protection afforded to tenants by these Acts
vanishes when the buildings become certified as dangerous structures,