A shopping area plagued by issues including collapsing steps, tiles falling off and a dangerous car park remains in limbo despite repairs urgently needed to maintain its safety as a dispute to whose responsibility it's rumbles on.
The Highdown Way Neighbourhood Centre including St Andrew's Ridge Shops, in St Andrews, North Swindon, has been deteriorating for many years.
The site is also home to a pre-school, a local co-op, a chip shop, and other local businesses.
There are a range of issues with the land including the car park deteriorating, becoming uneven and dangerous causing danger to a nursery located on the site, with parents being told to be extra careful.
There is a pagoda situated near the car park, which has had to be bordered up, because of its steps collapsing and tiles falling off.
Fencing has been put up around it, but anti-social behaviour has also started to become a problem, due to no lighting or CCTV cameras.
The land was built between 1998 and 1999 and was originally owned by Local Centre Abbey Meads Management Company Limited.
The management company ended up dissolving, meaning that the land became subject to a legal process known as 'escheat' - it effectively became ownerless.
'Escheat' is the process under common law where freehold land which has become ownerless reverts to the Crown as the ultimate owner of all land.
The Crown Estate did not provide a comment for this article but responded to say that when a property is held in 'escheat', they are unable to take any action to do with management, possession or ownership in relation to the property, including remedial work or repairs, because it may incur liabilities associated with the property.
They said they had previously been in contact with Swindon Borough Council and would be happy to have further discussions about the council becoming owners of the site, and therefore responsible for its future use and maintenance.
"The land has seemingly been abandoned by the Crown Estate, and it is affecting businesses, and local residents who live above the shops," said Parish Councillor Kate Tomlinson, of St Andrews Parish Council.
"If you look at the Crown's website, it talks all about its obligations to communities, to businesses, and then you just look at this piece of land, and it's a joke.
"From my point of view, I just think it's ridiculous that we've got a Crown Estate that manages a property portfolio of billions of pounds, and they can't even come and fix this land."
Sue MacDonald, another St Andrews parish councillor, also mentioned the lack of maintenance of trees and bushes on the site.
"That is a danger as well. It is making the car park partially sighted, and not everyone drives round it at a sensible speed," she said.
Cllr Macdonald also said that the trees are forcing up grating, which is damaging cars.
Residents expressed fears that, if the land is not tidied up, people may see it as a place to dump rubbish.
The councillors say that they have been raising these issues for the last five years.
Cllr Tomlinson, along with Swindon Borough Council Councillors for the St Andrews ward, councillor Jake Chandler and Councillor Daniel Adams, have formed an action group with residents and shop owners, to put pressure on the Crown.
"Over the years, we have, on at least two or three occasions, approached the Crown, and the Crown's position, whilst changing slightly, has generally been of the opinion that it's not their responsibility," said Cllr Adams.
Cllr Chandler called this response from the Crown Estate "disappointing: "We don't dispute the land was escheated to the Crown, however, this in no way removes their obligation, morally, to maintain the land.
"In fact, legally speaking, they are currently the 'only' ones with the authority to maintain the land.
"It's the Crown's own lack of maintenance that is responsible for the 'liabilities' they are now arguing they cannot take responsibility for.
"I think it's a poor excuse and it still doesn't explain why they haven't sought to dispose of the land over the years to the surrounding businesses or flats, so that it could have been maintained properly over that time to alleviate safety concerns."
The future of the site is uncertain, but the councillors say the first step is to meet with a representative of the Crown.
If the local authority were to take the land over, the councillors say it would need to be in a good condition beforehand.
"There is six figures worth of work that might need to be done on this site, and no one locally has that sort of funds," said Cllr Adams.