It used to be called “Dodge City” because of the volume of low-level crime and scruffiness of the area.
But in recent years the Chester Avenue housing estate in Kinmel Bay has been transformed, and residents now have good reason to be proud of their environment.
In the latest move to ensure that any concerns are addressed, a door-to-door campaign was undertaken by staff of Cartrefi Conwy, who, in 2008, took over responsibility for housing from Conwy County Borough Council.
The “Make a Difference” Day, involving North Wales Police, Communities First, Keep Wales Tidy and other agencies, was launched in response to requests to Cartrefi Conwy’s anti-social behaviour unit.
In a three-hour “blitz” staff visited every home on the 150-dwelling estate seeking the residents’ views on issues such as late-night rowdiness vandalism, dog-fouling, alcohol and drug abuse and litter.
Jan Jones, of the ASB unit, said there had been particular concerns recently about gangs of youths drinking alcohol and causing a disturbance.
“We have a multi-agency approach involving the police, social services, youth justice service, Communities First, the council and others, with the aim of resolving all the difficulties,” she said.
As well as communal matters they can and do tackle issues such as problem neighbours. In one recent case the son of a tenant who was a constant nuisance to a neighbour was jailed after an injunction had been obtained against him.
Mike Nolan, who has lived on the Chester Avenue estate since 1978 and is a trustee of the community house which is a focal point for residents’ activities, said they were proud of the transformation which had had a massive effect on the environment.
“It was like Beirut in the early days but now it is very pleasant, and since Cartrefi Conwy have taken over it has been even better. People want to come and live here now,” he said.
“There is still some small-scale vandalism but this ‘Make a Difference’ Day gives everyone the opportunity to voice their concerns.”
Nora Roberts, 70, has lived in Chester Avenue for 35 years and brought up her four children on the estate. Now a volunteer in the Community House and on Neighbourhood Watch, she said she had supported the transfer of housing stock to Cartrefi Conwy from the outset.
“They have kept their word to improve the properties and they do genuinely listen to what we have to say,” she added.
Brian Horton also lives on the estate and is a tenants’ representative on the Board of the housing association. He said the “Make a Difference” Day helped to reassure residents that their concerns would be addressed even though some were understandably reluctant to make their complaints official for fear of reprisals.
“It used to be called Dodge City, but I have seen a real transformation,” he commented.
Michelle Jones, Cartrefi Conwy’s Community Involvement Co-ordinator, said that when a similar exercise was carried out previously all issues raised by the residents were resolved efficiently following a meeting and great collaboration of all agencies.
“Chester Avenue is no worse than some other areas but our aim is to draw up an action plan that will help nip any problems in the bud and make this a really great place to live,” she said.
