Residents petition slams council for estate condition (From Basildon Recorder)

Residents petition slams council for estate condition

6:30pm Wednesday 17th October 2012 in News By Luke Lambert

Councillor Phil Rackley and residents

RESIDENTS of 19 homes have drawn up a petition demanding Basildon Council take action about the condition of their estate.

All 19 homes at Gay Links estate in Basildon have put together a list with suggestions for the council including repairs to the damaged roads and pavements and trees, which have apparently not been cut back for ten years, which are blocking out the sun and affecting satellite dish reception.

Jean Oldacre has lived on the estate for the last 27 years and says it has got gradually worse as the years have gone by. She has started up this petition with the help of her neighbours.

Mrs Oldacre, 73, said: “It is madness, it really is. I don’t understand what has to happen for the council to help us out as several of the residents have tripped over now. I can’t think of another area as bad as this. I campaigned four years ago as we had to bend over to walk down the pavements as tree branches kept attacking us. All they did then was trim the lower branches but now things are much worse.”

“We have young families with pushchairs and elderly people with walking frames and it is not a safe area. There are 19 properties and 12 enormous trees blocking out the sunlight and the trees are burrowing underneath the pavement. If they are left who knows what damage they could cause.”