Residents complain of 'depressing' darkness as large tree blocks natural light
Distraught people have been plunged into constant darkness due to a huge tree blocking out light to their apartments in Willenhall.
Residents in Leveson Court in Leveson Street said they worried about huge electricity bills as they are forced to put their lights on during the day if they don’t wish to sit in near pitch black rooms.
And they, along with Willenhall South councillor Simran Cheema, said they have been constantly asking housing provider GreenSquareAccord – who run the block – to cut the tree back but to no avail.
Residents told the Local Democracy Reporting Service they were also dissatisfied with GreenSquare over a number of issues including damp walls and hazardous broken slabs in the courtyard.
A spokesperson for the provider said they have to prioritise dangerous or dying trees for work but added an inspection will take place this week to see what steps to take next.
And they also said issues reported to them were being worked through as a priority.
Leveson Court resident Andre Fraser said: “Everyone is having to pay extra for electric and with the cost of living going up I’m going to be spending a lot more.
“And not having light doesn’t do well for anyone’s mental health. It shuts them off.
“When I wake up first thing in the morning, I should be able to see some form of daylight. It feels like it is evening when it is 1pm and it’s not a great feeling.
“There is very little natural light. The only light I get is at winter when the leaves have fallen off.”
Disabled Maria Nelson has lived in Leveson Court for the past six years and she said: “I have to keep the lights on constantly – from morning to night. It’s dark if you turn the lights off.
“It’s depressing living here with no light. I don’t go very far and I’m here all the time.
“It seems as if [GreenSquareAccord] always has the money for new houses and not to carry out our repairs.”
Emma Davies, who is also registered disabled and has lived there for five years, added: “We’ve had absolutely no feedback from GreenSquareAccord about the tree.
“We’ve been trying to get them to sort out a number of other issues for years but nothing gets sorted.”
And Kevin Love said: “When there are no leaves on the tree, I can get good reception on my phone but any time there are leaves I can’t.
“I’ve been here since 2015 and they just don’t do the repairs right. There is 100 per cent damp on all my living room walls.
“The paving slabs are a hazard because they are broken and when it rains I get a puddle build-up right outside my home as the gutter leaks.”
Councillor Cheema said she contacted GreenSquareAccord back in the summer but still nothing had been done about the tree.
She said: “They sent out a contractor on August 24 to view the tree and they agreed it needed to be cut back. Yet here we are in October and nothing has been done.
“There has been a lot of serious failings. There is damp in people’s properties here and windows can’t be opened and they drag their feet.”
A spokesperson for GreenSquareAccord says: “We are sorry to hear about the issues at Leveson Court. Our tree team are going onsite early this week to carry out a site inspection to decide the next steps with the tree.
“We manage over 25,000 homes and due to health and safety requirements dead, diseased, and dying trees must take priority.
“A few customers have reported issues in their homes at Leveson Court. We are working with these customers to resolve these issues as a priority.”
