The ownership of a piece of the island’s industrial heritage has changed hands, as Braddan Commissioners have completed the sale of Cronkbourne Village for £1.5 million.

The 38 Victorian workers’ cottages, which require substantial refurbishment, now belong to Arragon Properties, reports Ewan Gawne.

Braddan chairman Andrew Jessopp estimates up to £1millon is needed to bring the properties up to the right standard, a cost his local authority couldn’t afford to bear. The commissioners first expressed intentions to sell the homes in 2015, but progress was delayed due to issues over ownership of the land.

Those have since been resolved.

It’s understood due to legal fees and other costs the local authority saw a net return of around £1.4m rather than £1.5m for the sale.

However, the authority also spent a further £300,000 due to the loss of rental income, rates, and ongoing maintenance at the Village since 2015.

To replace Cronkbourne Village, commissioners approved a £4.5 million scheme for 30 homes to be built at a site near to the Snugborough trading estate.

Work has now begun on this development, which is being funded through loans and borrowing.

Arragon Properties have been contacted for comment, but weren’t available at the time of publishing.

According to local historian Peter Kelly, Cronkbourne is the second-oldest example of an industrial village in the British Isles after New Lanark in Scotland.

Best known as the childhood home of Manx artist Archibald Knox, the cottages have been used for public sector housing since they were acquired by Braddan Parish Commissioners in the 1960s.

They underwent significant refurbishment in the 1980s, and further work has been completed since, but damp and condensation problems continue.

A few years ago it was identified a further significant amount of money - anywhere between £500,000 to a million or more - would need to be spent trying to eradicate the damp problems.

But the commissioners said many would still be cramped and not to the standard expected of today’s local authority housing.

Around half of the Cronkbourne cottages are currently occupied.