The Google Street View Camera last visited the Drayton Road in April.

Six months later, trees have been cut down, and building supplies have been delivered to a field off the Drayton Road. For many years it was used by horses. Very soon it will be used for houses.

The Google Camera drove by 65 Oxford Road in June 2015. The trees had already been cleared.

In October, concrete has been poured into a mold cut from the soil – outlining the new build.

Back in 2007 The Old Gaol still had the swimming pool building attached.

The opening of the White Horse Leisure Centre had led to the closure of the Old Gaol Leisure Centre. An attempt was made to turn it into an arts and leisure centre with library and possibly cinema, but there were not enough funds, and public opinion was against the library moving in any case.

So the Vale of White Horse District Council decided to sell the Old Gaol with the aim that the building satisfy 4 initial conditions:
* contribute to visual look of area
* encourage access to the courtyard, ground floor and riverside gardens
* make good use of the central riverside location and historic building
* be good value for money in terms of sale price, and if housing is included, it should have a mix of affordable housing.

Cranbourne Homes won the bidding. They were judged to be best value for money, providing an estimates £6.3m to the public purses.

Then the banking crisis hit in 2008 and according to an answer given by the Vale to Abingdon First under a Freedom of Information request, RBS withdrew its original funding agreement.

All these things were kept secret, and the contract renegotiated to keep it afloat. But now things have opened up, we hear “The final sale figure agreed by the Vale Council for the Old Gaol site is £3.2 million, which is well in excess of the next best tender bid when the site was marketed in 2007, plus £1 million towards affordable housing provision.”

The finishing touches are still being added. Balconies have been added to flats in the Old Gaol itself.

The original intention of the developers, in 2007, was to add a shop and 2 restaurants, but public opinion at that time was against a shop as there were empty shops elsewhere. And so the developers decided to go for 3 restaurants instead.

Thanks for the comments while we were away. Now, back in Abingdon, there is a chance to catch up with some of the happenings …

Preliminary work has begun on the development for 158 dwellings off Drayton Road. The first of the new pedestrian lights, funded by the development, on Marcham Road is underway. This is intended as a traffic mitigation measure.

10 Lime Trees have also been cut down to make an entrance to the Morland Gardens development.

Resurfacing work on Drayton Road from near Caldecott Road to Marcham Road has been completed. That was funded by Oxfordshire County Council not by the development.

A new independent living complex is opening in Summer 2015 at Mayott House, in Abingdon. The first people will move in very soon. For anybody interested in joining them try this link

The external facade of the new Abingdon School Science complex is also near completion.

Scaffolding is coming down, and the crane will soon be off.