To ask who I’m supposed to report my CF neighbour to?

[BarkItOff]

I live on a new build estate, it’s been up a few years now but the roads are still unadopted so it’s ‘technically’ private.

There is a park on the estate and there are 2 access points to this park. 1 at the entrance to the estate and 1 further down the estate close to a neighbouring estate.

One of the neighbours has put a sign up further down, stating private road, I mean technically yes but public access is still allowed but the CF has also put a chain and padlock on the gate to the path that leads to the park with a sign saying private!

I have been told this was because children from the neighbouring estate were using the park via this entrance and as we pay for the upkeep of the park it’s private. Except it’s not! It’s still a park able to be accessed by anyone. It’s made it particularly annoying for people on this side of the new build estate that have children as you have to walk all the way round to the front to get onto the park when there is literally a gate that leads to an access path right in front of you. And those of us that walk dogs there like to walk full circle, in one end and out the other and now we have to double back.

As the roads are unadopted will the council sort this and point out that she doesn’t own the park. The builders are long gone and we’re a nightmare to chase up snagging never mind anything else so they will be no help. The management company doesn’t want to know and say it’s not their responsibility. I’m tempted to go and cut the chain but I guess that’s criminal damage as she owns the chain.

Surly just writing to your MP and letting them investigate who should be dealing with this is the easiest solution now?

I think that’s a bit extreme. Your local Councillor is one thing, but going to you MP is a bit much!

It’s not active at all. There’s no meetings or anything like that. We just got letters to vote on work a few years back. I have no idea who is and who isn’t involved in the committee and many houses have changed ownership since then so unless I go knocking door to door and asking I can’t really report to them.

Create a new one!

Start with a whatsapp group, go knock on doors, see people while walking your dog, go up to people and say you are creating group to keep in touch about the neighbourhood. If no one else is doing it and you are bothered you will have to do it.

I was going to suggest this. I would have great fun putting on a big hat, balaclava, sunglasses coat etc and sneaking out in the middle of the night.

Can you not rally all interested (and probably annoyed) neighbours to go and knock at CF neighbour's door at all hours of the day and night asking for the key? As you need to get in to walk the dog, go for a run, check for burglars, whatever strikes you? Surely CF can't refuse you a key to a publicly-owned gate to a public park?

That's a great idea in theory, but while there's a management company in place at the moment I'd be giving them hell over this.

Someone appointed the management company - OP thinks it was the developer, who seems to have moved the responsibility of the road onto the freeholders, presumably by allocating them a share of the road (usually the part in front of their home).

The management company could quit tomorrow if they chose to, and it's what happens after that which I'd like know - who is responsible for appointing a new management company? And for that matter who is responsible for keeping the existing ones in place? What happens if they leave, or are doing a poor job? Who is going to be responsible for taking out a new insurance policy? And who is currently responsible for the parts of the road which are not even in front of anyone's home?

I mean this so respectfully to the OP, but there are so many questions unanswered, and having lived in flats and dealt with many managing agents over the years, there's no way I'd be letting this slide - they hold all the answers, but it seems they are not giving them. I'd wager a be they realise they are on very thin ice managing this site when the developers appointed them & walked away, and won't want to lose the job, but then they don't seem to be doing a fat lot either.