City of Edinburgh Council has apologised after tenants fumed over being moved out of their homes so extensive repairs could be carried out. Residents staying at flats in Drylaw’s Grieve Crescent were told to move out of their homes at the start of the year – and claim they don’t know when they will return.
Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Lezley Marion Cameron said the locals had to be relocated due to ‘health and safety’ concerns of the building and has apologised for the disruption as well as covering any up front costs. The residents claim they were given barely given any notice when a council worker turned up at their door and returned three days later with 10 boxes.
Emma Hutton, who lives in the building, says she has been left “extremely anxious” after packing up her belongings and moving to a new property. Speaking to Edinburgh Live, the 35-year-old said said: “I am really concerned about it.
“Over the last two years I have had two major operations, which I nearly died from. I’m anxious about moving due to my health. One operation was due to fluid in my stomach and I was in hospital for nine weeks.
“Halfway through my stay one of the veins in my chest had popped out and I was given 24 hours to live. Last year, I had to have a hernia taken out and part of my bowel too. Due to these operations, I am just so anxious.
“The council haven’t given us any information about what’s going to happen. I have no idea where I will be moving to or when. I just want to know what the plan of action is. It’s so worrying and really hard.”
One anonymous resident has been given another property to move to but claims it’s a lot smaller than her current home. She argues everyone in the building is getting different information and there has been no effort to try and minimise the stress of the residents.
She said: “I have no idea when we have to go. On January 8, someone turned up at the door and said we would need to move out due to the work. Someone then turned up with 10 boxes but I knew it wouldn’t be enough for all of my stuff.
“The communication has been so bad and everyone is getting told random information. It feels like nobody is there for us. We have been told where we are going but the flats are so tiny. I’m honestly furious about it all and they are giving us no clarity to help reduce the stress.”
Ms Cameron said: “Having recently completed work to the communal areas in the flats at Grieve Crescent the Contractor now needs access to complete repairs inside the homes. These repairs require removing sections of the ceilings and walls which will be noisy, dusty, and disruptive.
“For reasons of Health and Safety and the comfort of our tenants, the council is arranging decants whilst this work is carried out. The decant homes will have the same number of bedrooms as their permanent home. We’ve communicated with tenants offering assistance with moving belongings and the council will cover any up-front costs to minimise disruption.
“We apologise for the inconvenience and disruption this will cause to our tenants and are committed to keeping in touch throughout the process to make this transition happen as smoothly as possible.”