BULLDOZERS are about to move into a problem estate to try to clear a way to the future.
More than 50 empty houses at Grangetown, near Middlesbrough, are to be demolished.
Work on flattening the first batch of 31 properties in Borrowdale, Deepdale and Rydal Avenues will start today, and residents are being invited to watch.
A proposal to demolish a further 20 vacant homes has been submitted to Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council.
Iain Sim, chief executive of Coast and Country Housing, which took over the houses from the council, said: "The long-awaited regeneration of the Grangetown estate has begun.''
"This is the beginning of a new era and represents a significant milestone for residents who have been living in very difficult circumstances for many months as a result of a large number of vacant and boarded up properties.''
The demolition work has the support of people living in Grangetown. Feedback from a series of public meetings and working groups found it was the best way to deal with the empty properties.
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