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Search the Public Notice PortalA woman has said she'll stand in front of bulldozers to stop her home of 60 years from being demolished after plans to flatten the street were approved.
One hundred and ten homes on Third and Fifth Street in Horden will be reduced to rubble as part of a £10.7m regeneration project plans to build 105 new homes.
The plans were given the green light on Wednesday (December 3) by Durham County Council's planning committee despite fierce opposition from residents, who turned out with placards at county hall to voice their anger.
Moira Bellingham, who has lived on Third Street for 60 years, told the Echo: "They can send the bulldozer straight through the house and I'll still be stood there.
"They will have to kill me,"
Moira and brother Ray, 68, moved in with their parents when they were children, but now the siblings and dozens of their neighbours will be turfed out to make way for the new homes.
The 66-year-old added: "I'm devastated. Our parents put a lot of hard work into that home. It's lovely.
"We have kept it that way. It has been eight years since my mum passed away. When she died, she was lying in her bed and died content because she knew we were going to be comfortable with this home.
"We had it as our security. They left it for us, and that's what upsets me the most. Now, the council just want to come along and bulldoze it and smash it to pieces."
The scheme, first announced in 2019, has been branded a "catalyst for change", spurred on by one in ten homes standing empty and boarded up, and the area is plagued by anti-social behaviour.
The plans also involve building on green space on the already-demolished Fourth Street site, with two-, three-, and four-bed homes and two-bed bungalows to be built as social housing.
Residents who will lose their homes will be put to the top of the list for new social housing, but this is not enough for some like David Ramos.
The 51-year-old moved from London to Horden eight years ago because he "couldn't afford" to live in the capital and ended up buying his home at auction.
Addressing the planning committee David said, "this is not just a planning application - it's my life", and begged councillors to refuse or defer a decision on the plans.
He added: "I never thought I'd have to move again, but here we are. We are asking you to refuse the plans or defer them before 110 perfectly good homes are lost forever.
"This is a wonderful community that would be torn apart by what is proposed here. I've lived with constant uncertainty. I don't know what's going to happen."
But after the plans were approved, David was despondent and admitted the meeting felt like a "heavy defeat".
He said: "I'm shocked. I don't get it. The council think that this is the way forward.
"They don't realise that we really aren't being offered anything. They are taking us from owning a home into the rental market.
"This is a pretty heavy defeat for us. I have got to re-think my plans. I can't see any way we can stop it now."
Following the meeting, Cllr Joe Quinn, Cabinet member for resources, investment and assets, added: "The approval of these plans represents an important step forward in efforts to regenerate Horden.
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"Once complete, the scheme will offer a choice of high quality, well-designed and much-needed affordable homes for local people, with existing residents of Third and Fifth Street given priority.
"The new housing will also help to tackle issues associated with long-term empty homes and reflects our commitment to building vibrant and resilient communities across County Durham.
"Furthermore, we hope the investment we are making in Horden’s future will attract other investors and result in even more regeneration activities in the East Durham area."
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