Council tackles towering threat (From Free Press Series)

Council tackles towering threat

RESIDENTS of a Pontnewynydd tower block have praised Torfaen Council for its swift action in tackling problems of anti-social behaviour in the area.

Just four weeks ago the Free Press reported how people of Fairview Court, Pontnewynydd, described themselves as living in fear after a spate of incidents at the premises.

These included a five-kg weight being thrown through an upper floor window directly in front of the building's main entrance, people dangling others outside of windows, cars being frequently damaged and fights break out in the building.

The residents recently met again with Cllr Gwyneira Clark, executive member for housing and community safety, Cllr Ivor Davies, the local ward member, council tenancy enforcement officers and local police officers to discuss what action has been taken to address the problems.

They praised the council for installing better lighting around the car park area and for putting a security officer on duty in the evenings. They also praised the fitting of an anti-arson complaints box in the building, saying it ensured residents can log any complaints swiftly, but added some issues still need addressing.

"We are very pleased to see things are moving, the new lighting is fantastic, but there is still on-going problems with the misuse of key fobs, people can still gain access to other landings, but once that has been done that will make things much better," one resident said.

Despite the occurrence of some isolated incidents of disturbance at the building, the residents agreed that police presence in the area had improved, although they said more could be done.

They expressed concerns about youngsters hanging around outside the building and a nearby shop.