The owners of an Isle of Wight ‘eyesore’ must pay thousands of pounds in fines and costs after failing to carry out repairs on the Sandown property.

Graham Assets Ltd, and company director Moses Meisels, were prosecuted by the Isle of Wight Council for failing to comply with a Section 215 Notice in relation to a large, derelict building on the corner of Fitzroy Street and Station Avenue.

A representative for the company was not present at Isle of Wight Magistrates’ Court hearing, the case proceeded in their absence, and was found proved.

The landowners must collectively pay nearly £8,000 in fines, surcharges and costs.

The council said the legal action underlined its commitment to actively enforcing against owners of buildings that are falling into a state of disrepair.

Councillor Paul Fuller, Cabinet member for planning, said: "This has been a long process, which started before the sale of the building in 2021.

Read more: 

"Despite significant attempted communication by the council, the landowner failed to undertake any remedial works to bring the property back to a satisfactory level of repair with a knock-on effect of anti-social behaviour and trespass into the building.

"It will always be in the landowners’ best interests to work with the council to avoid formal action. 

“This prosecution goes to prove that trying to ignore the council can end up with landowners having a criminal record and paying fines."

In July 2023, the council served a notice under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 which specified an extensive list of repairs required.

The notice came into effect on August 31, 2023, with a compliance period of six months.

The council established that by March 2024 no works had been undertaken and the landowner was in breach of the notice.

Local ward member, councillor Ian Ward, said: "This building has lain desolate and has negatively affected this part of Sandown for many years.

"The owners have recently been given planning permission for flats so I hope this will give them the incentive to solve one of Sandown’s problem buildings."