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Building manager withdraws huge cladding bills after remeasuring block
The managing agent of a development where leaseholders were told they had just two months to find up to around £30,000 for cladding remediation has temporarily withdrawn the bills after remeasuring one of the affected blocks.
It is now uncertain how much residents will be charged for the works after it was discovered that one of the blocks which was previously deemed under 18 metres was in fact taller than that mark, and may now be potentially eligible to secure remediation cash through the government’s Building Safety Fund.
Two of the three blocks at Paradise Wharf in Manchester are covered in dangerous cladding.
Previous measuring of the affected blocks found that one – Jutland House – was taller than 18 metres and so meets the government’s definition of a high rise, while the other – Whittles Croft – was below this threshold.
That meant only Jutland House could apply to the government’s £4.5bn Building Safety Fund, with Whittles Croft not currently eligible for support.
On 21 May, the development manager Mainstay Group, part of FirstPort, told residents it would begin remediation work as soon as possible “to comply with the strict requirements of the Building Safety Fund”.
A condition of the £1.66m secured through the fund for Jutland House was that work must begin by 30 September.
Mainstay told residents that it wanted to carry out work on all three blocks simultaneously to take advantage of a £187,000 bulk discount agreed with the contractor.
It also said it wanted to fix Whittles Croft’s cladding now rather than wait an estimated two years for the government’s loan scheme for blocks shorter than 18 metres in order to reduce the yearly insurance premium on the block, which is currently around £100,000.
Service charge payment requests were issued to the 114 leaseholders at Paradise Wharf for extensive works across the three blocks, including cladding remediation at Whittles Croft.
A payment request to one Whittles Croft resident, seen by Inside Housing, demanded £32,689.72, with an accompanying email stating the money must be paid by 31 July.
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Leases at Paradise Wharf allow the freeholder to claim service charges for works across any of the blocks, so residents of the third building at the development – Junction Works – were also billed for cladding costs despite the issue not affecting their building.
But last week, Mainstay remeasured Whittles Croft and this time found that it was taller than 18 metres.
The company told Inside Housing it had discovered that measuring by the independent specialist which carried out the previous exercise did not include “the upper level of duplex apartments”.
An application to the Building Safety Fund for Whittles Croft has now been submitted, with the huge bills issued to residents for work on that building and Junction Works temporarily withdrawn pending the government’s decision on the submission.
Mainstay has now revised its plan to include £800,000 repairs to Junction Works’ roof, currently subject to Section 20 consultation, in the work beginning on 30 September.
A spokesperson for Mainstay said: “We understand how difficult the uncertainty is for residents and homeowners, and we’re doing all we can to support them.
“We are working closely with the resident management company to update residents and this has included a meeting with leaseholders at the end of last week to brief on the current position.
“One of the buildings at Paradise Wharf was initially considered ineligible for funding.
“However, new information has recently come to light regarding the measurement of the building, and we have now been able to submit further evidence to the Building Safety Fund.
“We are awaiting a decision from government on whether this building is eligible to proceed with an application to the fund.
“Pending this decision, it is not possible to confirm the cost that might be borne by residents, but we are doing all we can to ensure any costs to leaseholders are kept to a minimum.”
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