A ROW of iconic Port Glasgow tenement buildings will finally be torn down next month, it has been announced.

The landmark Bouverie Street flats will be razed to the ground over a six month period starting on 5 May.

Demolition work is planned to last until the end of October.

Formal planning permission to tear down the striking tenements was granted by Inverclyde Council in January last year.

During the demolition, there will be a temporary road closure in place between Lower Bouverie Street and Springhill Road. The flats, owned by River Clyde Homes (RCH), are thought to be one of the longest continuous tenement buildings in Europe with over 100 properties.

They are believed to have been built in the mid-19th century as part of the expansion of the east of the town and initially housed shipyard workers.

The death knell for the now vacant tenements came after a feasibility study into their future found was carried out in 2012.

It found that the properties could be refurbished and brought up to modern housing standards.

But the exterior was condemned — with parking, drying areas, gardens and open space deemed beyond repair and not up to standards.

After consultation with residents, RCH bosses took the decision to tear down the tenements, which were among more than 1,000 properties earmarked for demolition by housing chiefs.

The flats were once packed full of families but as they started falling into disrepair residents began moving out until eventually all the properties were empty.

In recent times the buildings have been plagued by trouble, including numerous deliberate fires. Despite falling into disrepair over the years, the eye-catching flats were the subject of an award-winning photograph 18 months ago.

Photographer Simon Butterworth’s image of the doomed buildings won a prize at the prestigious Landscape Photographer of the Year competition.

The Glasgow snapper, who regularly visits Inverclyde, said: “I was driving down the road and spotted the buildings and I just hit the brakes on my car, got my camera out and took the shot.

“I spoke to a man further down the street who showed me around it all and I spent the next two or three hours walking around the block taking photographs.”