Ksenia Martin, a retired housing manager from Clifton, Nottinghamshire, has been left devastated and feeling isolated as construction work has begun to widen the A453 outside her home. The work, which includes the introduction of a brand new roundabout, will prevent Mrs Martin from using her driveway ever again.
Mrs Martin bought the house back in 2011 for £107,000 and decided to re-landscape her front garden and driveway – a project that set her back £20,000 and now, understandably, she regrets.
She explains:
“I’m devastated – I’ve spent a lot of money on the driveway, having it re-paved and also having six-foot gates put up”
As a result, and in a bid to get away, Mrs Martin decided to put her house on the market and things began to look positive when after only four days, it sold for £130,000. However, the sale fell through due to the development and she has been unable to find a buyer since.
Mrs Martin explains:
“I’ve had another eight viewings but once they took one look at the roadworks they turned round”
A spokesman for the Highways Agency – who have provided Mrs Martin with a small parking space 200 yards from her front door insist:
“Plans were in place when Mrs Martin purchased the property and local searches and plans indicated the impact the A453 scheme would have had on the property.”
This highlights the importance for house purchasers to carry out all the relevant checks including planned development and boundary lines. Mrs Martin explains that had she been aware of the plans she would never have purchased the property.