Darren Taylor is one of many Darwen residents who finds his eyes rolling every time he sees what he has dubbed "the metal monstrosity". Almost 20 years ago work began to build a large housing estate on what was Belgrave Mill owned by Crown but partway through construction the project stalled leaving an unsightly barren wasteland atop a huge stone wall.
"We were living in Bolton at the time and my partner was about to start a new job in Blackburn," she told LancsLive. "It seemed the perfect compromise because it meant I could get to my job in Bolton and he could get to Blackburn. Work at Belgrave Heights, as the £30m development is called, started in 2005. McInerney Homes vowed to build 127 houses and apartments across six tiers of the steep site ranging in price from £116,995 to £187,995.
For the last 12 years the site has remained untouched. But now LancsLive can reveal the "metal monstrosity" could soon be removed.