First Meeting of Residents/Householders about the Shed
In October 2013 Local Residents (20 or so) met in the Littlehaven Hotel, South Shields, to discuss the Shed or Slipway Cover being constructed by UK Docks, nearby, in River Drive. The meeting agreed that the shed was built much higher than planned but this was difficult to prove because the plans provided by the Council could be interpreted to indicate that the height was not materially different from that planned and anyway the Council would not say how high the framework was.
Issues about loss of amenity noise and privacy were also raised. The voices of those living in Harbour View were understandably louder as they were overlooked by the construction workers, believed to be Romanians.
Outcomes:
- Recommendation that individuals initiate complaint procedure with the Council;
- General agreement that the Tyne Gateway Association (TGA) should be contacted to handle this.
Transpires that theses were retrograde steps:
- The Complaints System is heavily rigged against the complainant, throughout all the stages, right up to and including the the Local Government Ombudsman;
- The Chairman of the TGA did not support the Local Residents and within 3 months most of the committee had resigned.