Owner finally bulldozes illegal monster mansion
AHOMEOWNER has finally demolished a “monster mansion” he built without planning permission – but still faces legal action for the mess left behind... which neighbours say looks even worse.
Gurwinder Singh sparked anger when he knocked down his modest semi-detached house and replaced it with a four-bedroom property in Willenhall.
He was ordered to tear down the half-built £300,000 home by Walsall Council in 2020 following 100 complaints from fuming neighbours.
Residents said the building work had made their “lives hell” and others described the eyesore as “like a Travelodge in the middle of a housing estate”.
Delivery driver Mr Singh, 43, appealed to the council’s Planning Inspectorate but they dismissed the appeal and ordered him to bulldoze the property by April 7.
The father-of-two has since demolished
the illegal build – but left behind piles of rubble rubbish and building materials, which he has failed to tidy up. He now faces possible court action for failing to comply with the enforcement notice following the four year row.
Next door neighbour Pat Harding, 76, claimed her house has been left damaged and unsellable – with one wall now exposed to the elements.
She said: “I was even sat reading a book on my bed one time and a rolled steel joist came through my bedroom wall.
“They also put holes in my living room wall that I could see out of. I could just look out into the building site.
“But they never seemed to think it was a problem. There has been no respect shown from the start.
“My chimney has been left balanced by the gallows brackets and I’ve been told it’s unsafe and I should move out.
“But I’m not going to move out of my home, why should I? They have also caused damage to my wall and they have just covered it with plastic sheeting held down with wooden batons.
“I’ve had two winters where it was 11oC inside my house. I’ve had barely any insulation and they have just left it like this. There’s building materials strewn all over the place and they have not repaired the damage to my home.
“I have rising damp because of no drainage and guttering. It’s been a nightmare.
“They just don’t seem to care and it has taken it has taken its toll on me.
“When it began I had just had cancer surgery. I really don’t need this stress at almost 77-years-old.
“I could not sell this home if I wanted to. It’s missing a wall on one side.”
Grandfather Cliff Stevenson, 84, a retired mechanic, lives opposite the house and branded it ‘an appalling eyesore’.
He said: “We’ve got the house knocked down finally but now the problem is all the mess and these great big boards he has erected.”
A local, who did not want to be named, added: “The council should never have let it get to the size it did in the first place. It was enormous and looked ridiculous. Now there’s building materials strewn around the place and the site needs clearing. He wants to rebuild it again. It’s going to have cost them a fortune by the time he’s built two houses.”
Tory councillor Stacie Elson said the council were now looking to prosecute Mr Singh because the deadline had passed.
A Walsall Council spokesperson said: “The council is monitoring the situation to ensure all actions in the enforcement notice are complied with.”