Fed up Edinburgh tenants 'waiting three years for repairs' at their block of flats

A group of Edinburgh tenants have told of a three-year battle to get repairs at their Granton housing development.

Residents at Hesperus Crossway say they have been left with draughty doors and broken shutters - prompting direct action against Edinburgh landlord C~Urb Lettings.

A protest took place outside the development on Thursday November 14, after tenants formed a union in July in partnership with Living Rent, Scotland’s Tenants’ union.

READ MORE: Scottish strongman Luke Stoltman breaks silence after wife's bombshell claims

READ MORE: Edinburgh-bound passenger plane diverted after declaring mid-air emergency

Speaking to Edinburgh Live, Lucas Honey, aged 35, described the problems he faces living in the development as a wheelchair user: “My flat was advertised as an accessible flat. When I moved in however, it was laid with carpets I couldn’t wheel across, a step onto a patio that I can’t get onto, and a kitchen I can’t reach to prepare food.

'I’ve been asking for modifications to this flat for three years, and they say they’ll get someone to look into it and then nothing happens."

Lucas also described feeling unsafe in the development: “There is no security as the garage shutters to the basement carpark have been broken, from the basement carpark there is one door to get into the building and this door has been broken about a dozen times in the past three years. Anyone can walk into the building.

"I’ve had people put notes on my car, my windows and gate smashed, and my walls spray painted."

Siobhan Schulberg, aged 54, has lived in the development since March 2021 and described a number of similar long term maintenance issues also not taken care of by C~Urb Lettings.

She said: “This is my second flat in the development, I had to move from the previous one because of maintenance issues that weren’t resolved. This flat is no better, I’ve got black mould all up my walls that I can’t remove because the central heating was installed completely incorrectly.”

“I’m sick and tired of living in this nightmare experience - it has caused me issues with my physical and mental health.”

Health problems have also been a concern for resident Stephen Hughes, aged 54, who has lived in the building for two and a half years and has liver cancer.

He said: “I've had to put thick curtains up in my house, paid for with my own money, because the windows let in too much cold air from the sea. Triple glazed windows shouldn’t create that much of a draft.

"The cost of heating my home is too high for me, things are so tight with money that I just can’t afford it.”

Residents within the development realised they were all facing similar issues with C~Urb in July, with help from Living Rent.

One resident Catherine Eadie, aged 53, described the feeling amongst tenants when they realised they were all facing similar issues.

She said: “It’s great to feel the solidarity within the neighbours and the community. We were all getting exhausted with our own battles with C~Urb and being made to feel like our issues were isolated.

Since July the union of residents living in Hesperus Crossway have put a number of demands to C~Urb Lettings.

These include: the replacement of doors and windows that let in a draught, the replacement of the garage shutters and the installation of CCTV, and the replacement of the doors in the underground carpark for more secure ones.

Following the protest on November 14, C~Urb Lettings agreed to speak to the residents' union to negotiate on some of the demands at a meeting later in the day.

A spokesperson for Living Rent said after the meeting: "Union members met with C~urb directors today and were still unable to get timelines on repairs, and no commitments to increased security. After years with no repairs to the shutters, tenants were told by C~urb that they're expected to be fixed in 6-7 weeks, but that the housing association still couldn't give a solid date for completion.

"C~urb didn't agree to any measures proposed to improve security on site (CCTV, warden, better main doors), and instead offered to survey tenants instead. No promises were made by C~urb that there would be any action following the results of this survey. Members have proposed to meet with them again and hope to win their demands."

But describing the outcome of the meeting, a spokesperson for C~Urb Lettings said: "There was a preplanned meeting with residents and C~urb representatives that did happen as planned on Thursday. My understanding is this was very constructive and there's a positive action plan in place to resolve any issues."