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on the Ware-street area to be known as Archer House. The dwellings will contain
accommodation for 228 persons in 39 tenements, and upon their completion steps
will be taken to obtain possession of the houses standing on the site required for
the second block, with a view to their demolition.
Another area which is being dealt with by the Councu under Part I. of the
Housing Act, 1890, is the Hickman's Folly area, Bermondsey (6 acres), to be known
after reconstruction as the Dickens estate. About 1,645 persons of the working
classes will be displaced, and the order of the Minister of Health confirming the
scheme requires the provision of accommodation for 1,660 persons, of whom not
fewer than 1,000 are to be accommodated within the area. Much of the property
included in the area has been acquired, but little can be done in the way of providing
a site for any dwellings until some accommodation has been provided off the
area to rehouse the persons who will be displaced. A site in Staple-street, Southwark,
which has been cleared under the Tabard-street, etc., scheme, is available
and it is proposed to erect thereon two blocks of five-storey dwellings to contain
32 tenements with accommodation for 264 persons. To enable contract particulars
to be prepared the Council on 18th November, 1924, approved a capital
estimate of £700 to meet preliminary expenses in connection with the work. With
a view to meeting to some extent the difficulty experienced in providing accommodation
suitable for many of the persons to be displaced, it is proposed as an
experiment to adopt some small structural alterations in design to enable tenants
who may so desire to sub-let one room as a bed-sitting room. Every such room
will have two windows and will be large enough (about 150 square feet) to permit
of its use for this purpose. The room, which will be approached directly from the
entrance lobby to the tenement, will be provided with a ventilated food and crockery
cupboard, and light cooking may be done at the stove, which will be provided with
a swing trivet for this purpose. If the experiment should not meet with sufficient
success to justify its continuance, the tenements can be utilised for single occupation
in the usual way without any structural alteration.
Hickman s
Folly
scheme.
The Bell-lane and Ellen-street scheme under Part I. of the Housing Act, 1890,
provides for the clearance and reconstruction of two areas known as the Bell-lane
area, Spitalfields (4 acres) and the Ellen-street area, St. George-in-the-East (1½
acres). Under the scheme as confirmed dwellings have to be provided for the
accommodation of 1,705 persons of the working classes, of whom not fewer than 600
are to be accommodated within the Bell-lane area, and the remainder elsewhere.
The acquisition of property in the Bell-lane area is being proceeded with and plans
have been prepared for the first block of dwellings designed to contain 12 lock-up
shops on the ground floor and 26 tenements with accommodation for 160 persons
on the upper floors. The name " Holland estate " has been selected for the area
when reconstructed.
Bell-lane and
Ellen-street
scheme
A scheme for dealing with two unhealthy areas, known as the George's-road
and Brand-street areas, Holloway (3¼ acres), was made by the Council on 27th
November, 1923, and amended on 29th July, 1924. Altogether, 1,320 persons of
the working classes will be displaced, and it is proposed to provide accommodation
for an equal number of persons of whom about 900 will be accommodated on the
cleared areas. The revised estimated cost of acquisition and clearance is £42,700
gross, exclusive of the cost of erecting the new dwellings. The scheme involves the
displacement of a number of costermongers, and it is proposed, therefore, to
provide a site upon which sheds for the storage of barrows can be erected, if
required. Application was made to the Minister of Health for confirmation of the
scheme, and a local inquiry was held on 4th December, 1924. The Minister's
decision is now awaited.
George'sroad
and
Brand-street
scheme.
An official representation under Part I. of the Housing Act, 1890, was made
to the Council by the Medical Officer of Health of Poplar with reference to three
unhealthy areas, known as the Baker's-alley, Birchfield-street and Bromley-place
Baker's-alley,
Birchtieldstreet
and
Bromleyplace
scheme.