Published: Thursday, 25th September, 2008 01:00
Common ground move
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The buildings in Silver Street by the community garden
BUILDINGS used for drug-taking and squatting are being knocked down for new housing, taking a community garden with them.
The council-owned terrace in Silver Street and the corner with Crown Street in Katesgrove – which used to house the Women’s Information Centre – fell into disrepair and activists turned the nearby land into a garden in May last year. It was closed down after the council expressed fears about the stability of the buildings, but was allowed to reopen for a party earlier this month.
Borough council spokesman Chris Branagan said: “We are in negotiations with a developer and the owners of adjoining land with a view to using the land for new housing.
“We are looking at a site for a new garden in Elgar Road and another at the junction of Southampton Street and Crown Street.”
The garden was created by activists working together as Common Ground, which is now part of anti-capitalist group Reading Grassroots Action. The gardeners have been discussing running the new legal sites with the Katesgrove Residents’ Association.
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