Fresh talks on demolition of Dudley eyesore Cavendish House

Cavendish House in Dudley has stood empty for years and an ambitious plan was said to be in the pipeline to knock it down and replace it with homes and shops.

But more than a year after the plans were revealed it appears the demolition of the huge building, that looks over Duncan Edwards Way – Dudley Southern Bypass – could be a way off, with funding still needing to be secured to bulldoze the infamous block.

Councillor Khurshid Ahmed, cabinet member for regeneration and economic development at Dudley Council, said a meeting was now planned with the owners of the multi-storey building this month with a view to moving the plans forward.

Various schemes involving Cavendish House have been put forward over the years without coming to fruition and there has long been frustration about the eyesore building remaining disused.

When the building, off Trindle Road, is finally knocked down it is hoped the area will be redeveloped creating homes, restaurants and shops, under plans put forward by property developer Avenbury Dudley.

The company bought the site for £800,000 at a property auction in London in 2015.

It was once home to offices for the Inland Revenue, before being boarded up and left empty.

Plans include creating a stylish plaza, surrounded by new shops.

It is hoped the ambitious scheme would bring 500 jobs and rejuvenate the town centre but questions will remain about when work will start.

Councillor Ahmed is desperate to get the scheme moving.

He said: "We are supporting and helping them to make an application to the Black Country LEP to get funding for the demolition of the building. "We are actively supporting them to try and get the plans through.

"It's the gateway to Dudley and has being sitting there idle for far too long. We want to see it redeveloped as soon as possible. We are hoping to create more residential development in the town centre.

"We have got expanding colleges and have aspirations of a university campus in Dudley so we need a lot more homes."

Councillor Ahmed added: "A meeting is arranged with them and I am expecting some firm proposals." Opposition councillors have bemoaned the lack of progress.

Councillor Patrick Harley, leader of the opposition Conservative group, said the long-awaited redevelopment was taking far too long to come to fruition.

He said: "I asked about 18 months ago what progress there had been with Cavendish House and I was told substantial plans would be coming forward in the summer. Which summer did they mean?"