Vine House, abandoned for 22 years and plagued by rats, may be demolished with council approval of £1.5 million.
Vine House has 14 stories. People built it in the 1960s. It fell apart, like some others back then. It was left empty in 2003.
Many plans came and went for that place. One group tried to buy it in 2017. It did not happen. People talked about Vine House a lot. A council report seems to end the guessing.
Vine House is on Kepler Street. Neighbors don’t like how it looks. They worry about the area’s health. The broken glass is a common bad sight. Rats are also now a problem there.
One person said it is awful. They said rats and dead birds are everywhere. Folks dump trash there, the person shared. Things fall off the building. They want the block gone. Rats as big as cats live there now.
The council meets on February 13. They will discuss money for 2025 to 2028. They may approve money to take Vine House down. The plan includes £1.5 million. This is for demolition work.
The council spent about £100,000 on it in three years. They found a big crack problem. It’s on the outside brick columns. They looked at options in September 2024. Taking it down is best, they think. Past plans failed. It costs money to keep it standing. The building impacts the area.