Cambridge housing estate turning into 'ghost town' as demolition looms
All but 14 homes on Ekin Road are due to be demolished
A housing estate in Cambridge that could be demolished is turning into a "ghost town", according to a campaign group.
Last summer, the city council said it wanted to demolish all but 14 homes on Ekin Road to make way for new houses.
But since then, no plans have been formally submitted.
"Now it's a strange waiting game as we don't know what's happening; we've been waiting for 12 months and no updates," Dr Maurice Chiodo, from the Save Ekin Road group, said.
"Even if the council put in a planning application tomorrow, that's still around six months until they can get permission to do the project."
Cambridge City Council has previously said it wants to demolish and redevelop part of Ekin Road due to some council homes having "significant maintenance and structural issues", as well as addressing housing supply issues.
The council has confirmed it still aims to demolish 108 homes and retain 14, but wants to build 134 instead of 131 houses in their place.
Since last year, some residents living on the estate have been moved by the council to other accommodation.
Dr Chiodo's home is one of the 14 to be saved, but it is unclear if six homes in the north-east corner of Ekin Road will follow suit.
"We're seeing windows and doors being bordered up, so we have this feel we're living in a little bit of a ghost town now, bins all over the place that haven't been properly taken away," he said.
"We don't understand why there was such a rush given this is such a long process, and why the council hasn't pre-planned things so that once they came in and started doing stuff, they'd be able to do it efficiently."
Demolition could start next year - council
Cllr Gerri Bird, cabinet member for housing at Cambridge City Council, said a planning application is being prepared to be submitted within the next two months.
“74 households have already been supported to move out of their homes on Ekin Road into homes of their choosing, including into new council homes in Cambridge built through our housebuilding partnership, Cambridge Investment Partnership," she said.
"Our rehoming programme ensures that every tenant affected by estate regeneration receives personalised support, including compensation, priority access to high-quality new-build council homes and the right to return to a new home in the redeveloped estate where desired."
Cllr Bird added if plans are approved this year, demolition and building could begin in early 2026.
But Dr Chiodo - who is not convinced that will happen - told us residents have "been through hell" since the council laid out its plans.
"We can see while it's at least 12 months until they start doing any construction work, we're going to be stuck on this ghost town for another 12 months, which is disconcerting given how much of a rush the council was in (to get the plans in place)," he added.
"Every bit of information we've tried to get from the council has had to be fought for tooth and nail."