Plans to redevelop ‘decaying’ Wednesbury shopping parade for assisted living flats

The land in Carrington Road in Friar Park, Wednesbury, which has been subject to “considerable” antisocial behaviour and fly-tipping according to Sandwell Council, would be cleared up to make way for up to 30 supported living flats for the elderly.

Sandwell Council’s cabinet will discuss the plans at a meeting on July 30 with a report recommending councillors approve the move.

The cabinet report said the land had “been in decline for many years” and any work by the council would need to be “comprehensive to deal with the number of complex and inter-related circumstances specific to the area.

Sandwell Council said the site had been subject to “considerable” antisocial behaviour and fly-tipping.

“The shopping parade had been subject to piecemeal historical demolition of premises that were structurally unstable,” the cabinet report added. “The remaining units where vacant again suffer from antisocial behaviour and the remaining tenanted retail unit being in a poor state of repair.”

The land has been valued between £250,000 and £300,00 assuming it was ‘shovel ready’ for building to start quickly. However, the council has said it was “clear” that work would be needed to prepare the site for developers and would come at a cost.

The council’s cabinet had approved plans for 20 flats, ten bungalows and a new shopping parade in 2023 but when the work was put out to tender, no offered was deemed ‘value for money’ according to the council.

Two years ago, a borehole survey was carried out in Carrington Road which found ground conditions to be “worse than originally expected” and the scheme was cut to 12 bungalows and five homes alongside a single retail unit.

Nearly halving the number of homes and higher costs brought an end to those plans with the council then deciding to look at using the site for social care.