Anger over ’embarrassing’ eyesore entrance to Barnard Castle

A housing developer has been accused of dragging its feet in cleaning up an ‘eyesore’ entrance to Barnard Castle.

Residents of the relatively new Ashtree Park estate on the Darlington Road entrance to the town describe the mound of debris, discarded pallets and bits of fencing that greet visitors as embarrassing.

They say all the homes have been built and sold, and the developer Stonebridge Homes should be getting on with promised landscaping in front of the estate.

Stonebridge Homes says there have been delays outside its control and while the temporary office was taken away on Wednesday, July 1, some of the landscaping, such as tree planting, can’t take place until November.

A resident said: “I’ve lived here for two years and it has been like this for months. They keep bringing things and taking them away.

“It’s an eyesore. The main problem is when you come into Barney, that is the first thing you see, which isn’t great. They seem to be dragging their feet in getting it finished. It is supposed to be landscaped.”

A woman who has lived on the estate for about two-and-a-half years said: “I have friends from Darlington and they are asking ‘are you still behind the trenches?’.

“They say it is shocking as you come in. It is a bit embarrassing.

“It is the fact I have friends who come into Barney and they say it is awful, and they are right.”

She added that developers elsewhere ensure the fronts of their developments look attractive. She said:

“They build the front and then whatever goes on behind can’t be seen from the road.”

A spokesman for Stonebridge Homes said there had been delays at the front of the development because of the removal and diversion of North Powergrid and BT infrastructure.

The spokesman added: “That work has now been completed, allowing us to submit the necessary Section 50 application to Durham County Council – a process that takes approximately six weeks, followed by a 12-14 week construction programme.

“Public open space areas are also being reviewed, with tree planting planned for November in line with appropriate planting seasons.”

They added that work on the remaining roads, footpaths and landscaping is still to be completed and is expected to take between 12 and 16 weeks.