Newcastle couple regret moving to new build £358,000 home due to 'eyesore' at end of drive
by Daniel Hall · ChronicleLiveA Newcastle man and his partner say they regret moving into a new build property due to the "eyesore" they can see from their window.
When Walter Brown and Sharon Kelly moved into their four-bedroom detached home on Balsam Way, Callerton, in December 2022, they thought they had found their dream forever home. The home is part of the Ashberry Homes Church View development, and cost the couple £358,000.
However, they say they wish they'd spent their money elsewhere due to a "wasteland" and an "eyesore" at the end of their cul-de-sac, known as the SUDs. 57-year-old Walter, who works for Newcastle City Council, has been raising the issue of the state of the SUDs with developers since he moved in, but feels he has been fobbed off.
Walter told ChronicleLive: "It's like landfill, it's got mattresses buried in there, there's rubble in there. We've emailed, we've been on the phone, we've chased it and we're getting nowhere.
The developers say the site has been used by fly-tippers to dispose of waste illegally, and that sub-contractors have been appointed to clean up the site. However, they did not give a date on when this would start.
The lack of action has taken its toll on the couple, who say that the view from their home is horrendous. Walter continued: "The tears my partner's had, we've looked forward to living in a new home for quite a few years.
"The outlook is horrendous, it really is. We've paid a fortune for this house."
Walter claims that an executive from Bellway visited the site "about eight weeks ago" and assured him that the work would be completed. However, less than two weeks before Christmas, any clean-up operation is yet to start.
The 57-year-old has also raised a lack of road signs, "holes" on the road outside his home, the road not yet being fully tarmacked, and that street lighting had only been installed "in the last three months" - all of which ChronicleLive put to Ashberry's parent company Bellway.
Walter described the state of his street as a stark contrast to the neighbouring estate developed by Bellway. He added: "You walk around the corner onto Bellway's estate and it's all flat, and it's done to the standard that we thought we were buying into."
The issues have left the couple regretting the move from their previous home in Chapel Park.
Walter finished: "In Chapel Park, there's a really well-established and looked after estate. It's just really nice around there and we wish we had stayed on the estate and bought another house there now, that's what it come to."
A statement from Bellway, the parent company of Ashberry, read: "Bellway has been working to address the concerns of residents relating to the land which has been used by fly-tippers to dispose waste illegally. Our divisional teams have been on site and sub-contractors have been appointed to clean up the site and undertake landscaping works to improve the area concerned.
"The SUDs is an area which is a natural surface water drainage area and is designed to provide a natural area within the development. During the winter months, growth dies back and can look unsightly, so we are arranging to tidy up this area."
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