Black Country eyesore faces final curtain
ONE of the Black Country’s most infamous eyesores finally looks set for demolition.
A demolition notice to remove the blot on the landscape that is Cavendish House in Dudley has been submitted to the borough’s planning department.
Once home to offices for the Inland Revenue, before being boarded up, the seven-storey, 85,880 sq ft building is being bulldozed to make way for a £50m mixed-use development of homes, restaurants and shops, dubbed Portersfield.
Commercial property developer Avenbury Dudley bought the site for £800,000 at a London auction last year.
Enter the 2016 Business Masters – deadline this Friday
It is estimated that the Portersfield development could create up to 500 new jobs as well as significantly increasing visitors to the Black Country town, providing it will a welcome regenerative boost.
The proposed project covers an area stretching between Trindle Road and King Street, and between Flood Street and Oakeywell Street. The scheme also aims to improve links between King Street and the rest of the town centre, including High Street and Market Place.
A spokesman for Avenbury Dudley said: “For 20 years Cavendish House has blighted one of the key gateways into Dudley. The Portersfield development will create a new dedicated shopping and living quarter for Dudley, which in turn will lead to hundreds of new jobs and attract more visitors.
The scheme is one of a number of pipeline projects set to aid the town’s regeneration. ”
Cllr Khurshid Ahmed, Dudley’s cabinet member for planning and economic development, said: “We are delighted this exciting new development is moving a step closer. The demolition of Cavendish House will make way for a fantastic new development in the town which will revitalize the area, bringing in new jobs and investment.
“We are looking forward to seeing this important site transformed for the benefit of everyone who lives or works in Dudley.
“With major investment at Castle Hill, the transformation of the Market Place, along with Dudley College and housing developments, the demolition of Cavendish House and the Portersfield development, together with Centro’s proposed new bus station, are the final pieces in the jigsaw of the renaissance of our town centre.”
