Church owners given deadline

ST PAUL’S: Firm ordered to make dangerous site safe

The owners of a Perth eyesore are facing a massive clean-up bill after the council pushed through enforcement action.

Perth and Kinross Council has told the owners of St Paul’s Church to immediately sort out the dangerous site or see the matter taken out of their hands.

Arengate Ltd has been issued with a June 1 deadline to begin work or the local authority will simply complete what needs to be done and send it the bill. The building has been crumbling for decades and Perth traders regularly cite its poor condition as one of the key factors holding the city back in terms of economic development.

The owners of a dilapidated Perth church have been ordered to make it safe or face the consequences.

St Paul’s church has fallen into decay since closing in 1986. In September Perth and Kinross Council erected fencing to keep people at a safe distance from the crumbling building after owner Arengate Ltd failed to take action.

The company has now been given a deadline to carry out urgent works or the council will take matters into their own hands.

An order issued by the council includes a number of conditions, including that the resident feral pigeons must be culled and their droppings, nests and any carcasses removed.

Additionally the building, which has been dubbed an “eyesore”, is to be made wind and waterproof and any loose stonework secured.

The owners have been given until June 1 to start work or the council will do it for them and send them the bill.

The move has been welcomed by local councillor Peter Barrett.

He said: “It is great news that the council has finally set a deadline for action and implementing the repairs to St Paul’s church.

“If anything, it’s a case of better late than never – we should have done this months ago. Arengate have had several months to carry out works, from the notice which was issued last November.

“Hopefully this is a signal that the council is going to deal seriously with derelict buildings in our city centre.”

A spokeswoman for Perth and Kinross Council said: “The document gives the building’s owners, Arengate Ltd, notice that if they fail to take action and complete the urgent works required on the building by June 1 2016, the council will step in and carry out emergency works to prevent further deterioration of the building.

“Once completed, the council will seek to recover the costs incurred to carry out the necessary works, which include decontaminating the former church as well as making it safe, secure, wind and watertight.

“However, if Arengate Ltd undertake these works in the interim, it will not be necessary for the council to intervene at a significant cost to the public purse.”

Arengate Ltd declined to comment when contacted by The Courier.

“Better late than never”: Councillor Peter Barrett outside St Paul’s Church.

Security fencing was erected to keep people safe from the dilapidated building.