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Lack of building land also means the deferment of any further
clearance of the 1,500 unfit or obsolescent dwellings in the oldest part of
the town.
I know the Council is most anxious to provide a separate home for
every family in the Borough, at a rent which the tenant can pay and of
standard to meet modern requirements of comfort and amenity.
It may well be that rent and comfort can both be met by our architected
finding ways of satisfying the essential requirements within a smalled
total superficial area than the present minimum of 900 sq. ft. for a three
bedroom house and 750 sq. ft. for a two-bedroom house.
Adequate space is essential to health and happiness, but this must
not be carried to excess. I am concerned with this aspect of building
because of the risk to further new building arising from the increased
cost of construction.
FLAT DWELLINGS
I do not like flats for young children, and I am pleased to find the
Council so willing to facilitate the exchanges which have been taking
place between our established families who live in houses, and the young
families in new flats.
This is a practice which can well be encouraged to the advantage
of both.
So far few complaints have been received by me of noise, nor has
there been any nuisance incidence which might be expected from the
healthy young children who are living at Longbridge Road. I welcome
the spontaneous movement for tenants' associations, because, with the
full support and interest of the tenants, there is no limit to the scope of
usefulness of such associations where large numbers of people must live
closely together.
SPECIAL GROUPS
I am sorry it has not been possible for the construction of the hostel
and flats for the aged on the St. Paul's Church site to proceed.
Changing social and economic conditions have provided us with
the problem of the " ageing " and " aged." The span of active life' is
growing steadily wider, and elderly people with their greater leisure can
render valuable service to the community in which they live, and feel.
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