£5m move to bring Sandwell homes back into use
Hundreds of thousands of pounds will be pumped into Sandwell as part of £5 million plans to bring empty homes, shops and offices across the Midlands back into use, it has been announced.
Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton will get around £1.5m between them.
The money is being handed over as part of a Government scheme set up to target areas where empty homes have led to problems such as squatting, rat infestation and collapsing house prices.
It will see councils buy up houses across the area so they can be spruced up and put back on the market. Some shops will also be bought so to be turned into homes.
Sandwell has been awarded £625,000. More than half of the cash will go to the council to convert empty commercial buildings in Oldbury town centre into affordable homes. Properties in the Birmingham Street and Church Square areas will benefit. It is not yet known how many properties will be brought back into use.
Borough jobs boss Councillor Ian Jones, said: "We will be working with developers to turn empty shops or offices into decent homes as part of the drive to find a new use for unwanted business premises. This project will be running alongside the council's existing empty homes programme.
For each of the last two years, the council has actively involved owners to bring empty flats and houses back into use.
"Over 200 homes were brought back into use in 2012/13 and it is anticipated that a similar number will be achieved this year."
The rest of the cash in Sandwell will go to the Sandwell Family Housing Association. The association is an independent social housing provider based in Birmingham, which provides nearly 2,500 affordable homes for rent and low cost home ownership across the West Midlands.
Meanwhile, more than £500,000 will also be handed over to council bosses in Wolverhampton, while some £36,000 will go to Dudley Council.
