RESIDENTS whose entire village is being demolished have been left furious with some war survivors being made homeless at 90.
Disgruntled locals at the Penrhos Polish Village in Wales have lost the battle to save their historic homes built for World War II survivors.
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The iconic residential area was formed in 1949 when rows of wooden barracks were used to house Polish soldiers and their families who had fled the war.
But the innovative care village, which now provides homes for those from Polish, Welsh, or other backgrounds who need extra care, is now set to be replaced.
Developers wanted to replace the buildings and construct “affordable” new homes in their place.
Now, Gwynedd Council planners have narrowly accepted a proposal to demolish 107 homes at the village.
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Many of the village’s residents are now in their 80s and 90s – and face having to move again following the council vote.
Campaigner Barbara Owsianka, who had spoken at the meeting against the plan, said: “We are very disappointed the vote went against us, but it was close.
“It heartening that nearly half of the council listened to what we have to say and didn’t vote for this application. I just hope Clwyd Alyn takes that on board, and will listen to the residents.
“I hope they will make the residents central to their plans instead of their grand development to build essentially just a housing estate at this stage, everything else seems to be a wish, somewhere out in the future.”
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She continued: “In this application, there is nothing that describes the replacement of any of the communal services and facilities the elderly folks rely on, like the hairdresser’s or the launderette.
“A lot of people will be terribly worried, many don’t want to be moving in their 80s and 90s, some are very comfortable and happy in their bungalows.
“We are not against development, there are areas where it is run down, but the developers need to speak more to the residents to find out more about the facilities they need. I have heard several elderly people say they are just waiting for us to die, it is heartbreaking.”
The plans would see the building of 107 residential units, described as ‘100 per cent affordable dwellings’ as replacement homes.
Residents would remain in their homes until the new accommodation is built and then be moved to the new housing.
Barbara’s 90-year-old mum Maria Owsianka, moved to North Wales with nothing having fled war-torn Warsaw after the Nazi invasion.
Maria saw her home in Poland go up in flames as a young girl during World War 2.
And decades after fleeing the horrors of war, Maria now she fears she will be “forced out of her home” again.
She said: “We all came to Penrhos at the end of our lives in the expectation of a safe haven.
“We did not expect to be forced out of our homes yet again. We’ve been saying this for two years, but Clwyd Alyn haven’t listened.”
During the meeting a speaker for the applicant stated the scheme provided a “significant investment” to provide “energy efficient and high quality replacement homes”.
They would provide lifelong, flexible housing, suitable over different stages of peoples’ lives and would provide much needed homes in the Penrhos and wider area.
Under the plans an existing church, canteen and dining room would remain, along with a memorial garden.
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The plans also included a “firm commitment” to transfer a plot of land to Gwynedd Council for the development of a care home.
Officials at Gwynedd Council voted seven to five in favour of the plans submitted by Clwyd Alyn Housing Ltd with one councillor abstaining.
