February 28th – Meanwhile, back in Brownhills, Silver Court Gardens, the site of the tenement estate that was razed to the ground a decade ago is seeing the start of operations to construct new housing.
This is a large project, and will be good for the local economy, without doubt. But more than that, it’s great to see so much lost, wasted land come back into use.
This is great for Brownhills.
December 31st – I’m concerned about the fate of the sculpture at Catshill Junction in Brownhills. Since the new housing development started, due to lack of access, it has become increasingly overgrown. I’m worried it might be lost completely, and fear that Walsall Housing Group have made no provision for it in the plans for the new build.
On the subject of which, it’s very early days yet but I’m finding the building flat and characterless at the moment. Any new homes here are good; the land has been dormant and unused for a decade – but I do hope this currently somewhat bland construction develops some character as it’s topped out…
November 27th – A difficult day. I had to dash back from Walsall and I’d forgotten my camera, so had to use the phone. This one doesn’t take too bad pictures, to be fair.
As I left work, the sun was trying to come out, and it caught the glass of the Walsall Housing Group offices on the ring road, and made it golden.
A patch of beauty on a hectic day.
March 27th – The refurbishment of Austin House in The Butts, Walsall is an impressive thing indeed. Boasting 248 solar panels and a geothermally assisted heating system, as well as state of the art insulation, this ageing towerblock has been transformed by landlords Walsall Housing Group.
It’s sad that they couldn’t push the boat out similarly for the flats in Brownhills, but it is very impressive indeed.
December 14th – Walsall Housing Group have spent a huge amount – said to be about 6½ million pounds – on a new headquarters at Hatherton Street on the new ring road in Walsall. The development seems to have undergone some difficulty, with the glazing suffering a manufacturing fault causing condensation ingress and having to be replaced. The entire project was hoped to kickstart Walsall Council’s ill-fated Gigaport project, a development area intended for high tech businesses. There have been few takers, however, and the council sold the land this block stands on for a pound. Sometimes, I think councils should leave development stuff to the developers. These things never seem to go right…
November 18th – Humphries House, in Brownhills, is being refurbished, much to the surprise of the residents of Brownhills. The 60’s high-rise block had two companions, Waine House and Bayley House, both now demolished, and it was felt for a while that Humphries House would soon go the same way. Walsall Housing Group, in their infinite wisdom, have chosen to refurbish and reclad the remaining residences instead. I noticed this morning as I passed by on the canal that insulation was being fitted beneath the new cladding, and the fitting of windows was now nearly complete. Don’t envy those guys in the cradle, I can tell you. Bet it’s chilly up there, too…
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