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50
SUMMARY PROCEEDINGS
On three occasions application was made to the Courts for Abatement
Orders and in each of these cases the Order was granted.
Action taken under Section 27 of the Public Health Act, 1961, in
respect of conditions at 79 High Street, Edgware, gave rise to a case of
rather unusual interest. In addition to the Public Health aspect, Town
Planning and road improvement interests were also involved. The owners,
in fact, appealed against the Notice served upon them under Section 27
which called for the demolition of a dilapidated and worn out structure.
The Magistrates after hearing the Solicitors appearing for the Council
and for the owners visited the site and then decided that the case should
be adjourned. A second hearing was also adjourned and though at the
end of the year the structure was still standing redevelopment of the site
during 1964 which will entail the removal of the dilapidated structure
seemed possible.
Court action was also taken in respect of three cases involving
contraventions of the Food and Drugs Act. Fines were imposed in each of
these cases. In another case taken under the Shops Act where a shopkeeper
failed to provide suitable means of heating, action was taken and a
fine of £20 was imposed.
HOUSING
Today there is no area within the Borough where large numbers of
unfit properties exist. This is indeed a very satisfactory state of affairs.
During the year some old properties which could not be made fit at a
reasonable cost were reported upon and the Council dealt with these under
the provisions of the Housing Acts relating to Closing or Demolition
Orders. It is inevitable that of the 60,000 dwellings in the area a number
will become beyond repair each year and lost as housing units.
During the year some progress was made in clearing unfit dwellings
and more would have been possible if the supply of replacement houses
had been greater. For years the demand for new houses has exceeded the
supply and because of this the housing of families from unfit properties
has been delayed, in some cases for more than seven years.
The need for a constant supply of new houses within the financial
means of the families displaced from unfit houses will remain a matter of
importance and it is hoped that during 1964 and 1965 sufficient housing
units will become available to ensure that all families from dwellings
which are the subject of Closing or Demolition Orders will be rehoused
within a reasonable period of an Order being made.