A Fraser Avenue woman has backed plans to demolish the blighted Inverkeithing street.
Mother-of-two Sam Stewart (28), who has lived in a council flat in Fraser Avenue for two years, said the stigmatised street should be renamed after being razed to the ground.
She said, “I really can’t wait. It will be exciting to see what they are going to do with the place and I think if the name went it would make it a bit nicer.
“It’s got a really bad reputation. When I was first offered a flat in Fraser Avenue I wasn’t sure about taking it but I was desperate for a house.”
Fife Council is planning to demolish and rebuild Fraser Avenue, which has had its share of problems. When it was built in the 1950s there was a scramble for the flats, but now the council is struggling to find people willing to move into the properties because of the street’s reputation.
More than 20 flats were empty when IS4 Consultants examined options for the street.
Ms Stewart described the flats as “dreadful,” adding that the neighbourhood is “scary” after dark and littered with discarded needles. However, she said only a handful cause problems.
“90% of the people here are families and are good, kind people. My grandma said that people were fighting to get a flat in Fraser Avenue when it was built.
“Fraser Avenue wasn’t scary then, but now it’s got to the point that people are scared to go out at night. There have been people being stabbed and people being attacked.’Naked and drunk'”We have children, maybe 15 or 16 but definitely in school, running down the street naked and drunk and stuff like that.”
She added, “There are loads of parties even though it’s supposed to be a family street. The amount of needles that you find in the street is absolutely unreal. The flats are dreadful, truly dreadful.”
The council sees complete demolition and redevelopment as the most sustainable option and is planning to “rebrand” the area. At the last south-west Fife area committee meeting, councillors asked for more time to discuss the plans.
Most residents consulted have supported full redevelopment. It would see 154 homes likely to split 50/50 between social rent and private ownership and three shops built.
However, tenants must be rehomed and ownership issues resolved first.
Of 230 properties, 17 have been sold though right-to-buy and both shops are privately owned.
Photo David Wardle Photography.