Dear Residents
Works on your homes at Nubia Way
I hope that you’re well.
I know that you will have seen the work our contractors London and Kent are doing on Nubia Way, and I’m sure that you’ll appreciate an update on what’s going on, and any further impact this might have on you.
Following our stock condition surveys and reports from some of you, it would appear that there has been some ‘movement’ in some (but not all) of your homes, and with our data so far, this suggests that number 3 was the most affected.
We have already been able to remedy similar issues with self-built properties this year with some of the homes at Lowther Hill and Drakefell Road and have a great contractor available to make these repairs. We are hampered somewhat with the design of your homes at Nubia Way, which don’t allow very good access underneath for the contractors, so to attempt any repairs on the supports of the homes (the bits that anchor your homes into the ground), we have to access these by taking up flooring on the ground floor of the property.
Our plan is to completely finish work on number 3 before we move onto any other homes that may require work, so that our contractors can assess all the potential access points and understand the building’s construction and current state.
Our experience at the other self-build estates shows that it is quite common for some homes to be affected and their neighbours not, so this will affect what levels of work will be undertaken at Nubia Way, and we will prioritise the most urgent cases.
I think it’s important to share with you that we have removed the green roof at number 3 as we had concerns that it might be compromising the structure of the homes through its weight. We discovered that the roof actually weighed 15 tons, which may support our supposition, and so it may be the case that we permanently remove the green roofs at Nubia Way over time. We will assess the energy performance of number 3 to help us make this decision.
We aim to work on two other homes this side of Christmas, and we have already spoken with these residents. We have two homes who have refused to allow us to carry out the stock condition survey or check for any movement. We’ll shortly be sending out a final letter to these residents asking for an appointment, and if that isn’t successful, we will take action under the tenancy to gain access. I’m sorry that we sometimes to have to take enforcement action like this, but as landlord it’s our duty to ensure we understand the condition of our homes.
For all the others of you who have been so helpful in letting our contractors and CHISEL colleagues into your home, a massive thank you and apologies for any disruption. If you’d like to speak with Dean Salter, the CHISEL surveyor or myself, please drop us an email at these addresses.
Please don’t try and stop the contractors and speak to them or enter any of the homes that we are doing work on. and I will update you further on these issues when we have more news to share.
Yours sincerely,
Miles Lanham he/him/his
Chief Executive, CHISEL
