A £400,000 facelift is set to transform a housing estate once dubbed one of the most deprived places in Wales to live.
Work on a raft of environmental schemes is due to start this spring at the Peulwys estate, in Old Colwyn, thanks to a project led by housing association Cartrefi Conwy.
Consultation about the proposed improvements is already underway with the tenants.
The plans include a revamped entrance to the estate, which has over 250 properties and is home to around 600 people, and sympathetic planting schemes to soften the appearance of the estate which is spectacularly sited, overlooking the sea.
Among the other ideas being put forward are spring bulb planting, new children’s play provision, raised flower beds, new fingerpost signposting, new and repaired pavements, improved parking provision and restored green spaces with child safe areas.
The views of the Peulwys Go Green Association and residents are also being sought on a suggestion to rename estate Parc Peulwys.
Cartrefi Conwy was set up in 2008 when it took over all Conwy County Borough Council’s houses and flats in a stock transfer voted for by council tenants.
Money for the ambitious project has come from a £3.5 million pot set aside by them for environmental improvements to their 3,800 properties across the county.
The homes on the estate are already benefiting from Cartrefi Conwy’s huge £18 million internal renovation programme which is seeing their properties fitted with new kitchens and bathrooms, heating systems and front doors.
This will bring them up to the Welsh Assembly Government’s new housing quality standards by the end of 2012, well ahead of schedule, while another £3.5 million is being spent on external repairs.
Matthew Stowe, Cartrefi Conwy’s Environmental Improvements Co-ordinator, said: “This project simply would not have happened if Cartrefi Conwy hadn’t been created because the council would not have been able to access the necessary funding.
“It’s a brilliant project and we’ve worked very closely with the residents of the estate to come up with environmental improvements that will make Peulwys a real jewel in our crown.”
The newly-formed residents group, the Friends of Parc Peulwys, have worked closely with Cartrefi Conwy and it’s hoped the work will start in April.
They have welcomed the plans and Lynn Arthur, a resident since the estate opened in 1973 and manager of the Community House, said: “I think it’s excellent. It looked fabulous when we first moved it and I hope it’s going to be wonderful again.
“It will certainly make a big difference.”
Resident Marian Berrie said: “It’s uplifting to see what they have planned and to hear about it. People will look at what’s planned they will be pleased.”
Another long-time resident, Jackie Johnson, said: “It’s a real shot in the arm for Peulwys.
“Peulwys did have a reputation but people need to come up here and visit and see how nice it is and now it’s going to be even nicer.”
Senior Tenant Engagement Officer Owen Veldhuizen said: “We hope to start on some of the smaller projects in April and expect to get spades seriously into the ground in July, with the aim of finishing the makeover in the autumn.
“The consultation process has gone very well and everyone has been very receptive and very honest so we feel we’re going down the right path.
“Throughout the project we will be giving regular updates to the residents.
“It’s a big commitment but it’s part of Cartrefi’s overall commitment to improving its communities.
“We are refitting and repairing the homes but back in 2008 we also made a promise to improve the open spaces and while it is important to do the inside and outside of the homes the open spaces around them are also important.
“Peulwys is the first estate to benefit and we will then roll it out to some of our other estates across Conwy.”
