New HS2 route could see Mexborough housing estate knocked down before work is completed

Shocked residents have spoken out over new HS2 plans, that mean a Doncaster housing estate could be knocked down before work is even completed.
People living on the Shimmer estate in Mexborough received hand-delivered letters from its housing developer, Strata, this morning telling themthat 'some or all of their land'may be required if the plans are approved.People living on the Shimmer estate in Mexborough received hand-delivered letters from its housing developer, Strata, this morning telling themthat 'some or all of their land'may be required if the plans are approved.
People living on the Shimmer estate in Mexborough received hand-delivered letters from its housing developer, Strata, this morning telling themthat 'some or all of their land'may be required if the plans are approved.

HS2 confirmed this morning that there would be a proposed station in Meadowhall in favour of a stop in Sheffield city centre, proposing a new route that would cut through bits of Mexborough and Denaby.

People living on the Shimmer estate in Mexborough received hand-delivered letters from its housing developer, Strata, this morning telling them that 'some or all of their land' may be required if the plans are approved.

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Resident Tracy Chambers moved into her property on the estate in 2012. She says she only found out the news, which has left her feeling 'gobsmacked' when a neighbour text her this morning.

The 44-year-old said: "When I moved in here I thought that this would be it - this would be my family home for good. I'm still finding hard to take in.

"I don't know what I'm going to do if my house is knocked down. I live here alone with my three kids and I'll probably have to move back to Doncaster if it is knocked down and there's no way I'm going to be able to find a four bedroom house of this quality for £145,000 there.

"I've just spent a fortune on decorating my house and getting it the way I want it and now it might all be for nothing.

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"To uproot people's lives, and knock their houses down to save 40 minutes on a journey just seems ridiculous.

"We're a close-knit community here and I don't think people can really believe it.

"Some people have only just moved in, and now they're facing losing their homes before they've even settled down."

The estate's developer, Strata, say they only received the news 'late yesterday afternoon' and have been left shocked by it.

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Andrew Weaver, Chief Executive of Strata said: "We are shocked by this news. We have been working on site at Shimmer for a number of years and

are immensely proud of the homes that we have built and the community which we have helped to

create.

“As you can imagine, we are still trying to digest this information and there are still a number of questions that we are waiting to be answered. However, we are working closely with

representatives to understand proposals so that we can be clear on what this may mean for our existing and future home owners.

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“It is expected that the Government will launch a consultation on proposed plans in the autumn before a final decision is made about the route, and we can assure our customers that we will be doing all that we can to support them during this time.”

The new route is set to follow the M1 and M18 before heading north through the borough on its way to Leeds, cutting between Mexborough and Denaby.

Now instead of a station on a huge viaduct at the shopping centre HS2 trains will use existing tracks to get into and out of Sheffield via Chesterfield and north through Rotherham.

Mexborough First councillor, Bev Chapman, said the news had come as a big surprise and that Mexborough First would 'work with residents to make sure they get the best deal possible'.