Delayed social housing units finally unveiled in Ballymun
THE Taoiseach is to unveil 42 new social houses today on a Dublin site that has been an eyesore and source of controversy for almost a decade.
The site, in Stormanstown, Ballymun, north Dublin, was originally used for an ESB substation but then fell into disrepair.
In 2014, a private developer had agreed to build private housing units on the site despite protests of councillors in the area that it should be used for social housing.
Having been granted planning permission, the developer then opted to put the site up for sale with a price tag of €2.5million.
It subsequently lay vacant and was on the Derelict Sites Register for more than a year, with nearby residents complaining about rodents and dumping at the site.
Finally, in 2016, the site was acquired by approved housing body, Oaklee, for social housing. Approved housing bodies, or AHBs, are not-for-profit voluntary organisations formed for the purpose of building affordable houses. It was originally hoped that building works would have been completed and families moved into the homes by late last year.
However, delays in work led to this date being pushed back until today, when it will finally be opened by the Taoiseach and junior housing minister Damien English.
Independent councillor for Ballymun, Noeleen Reilly, who has been a long advocate for social housing on the site, said it is great for the area to finally have families moving into the homes.
‘It’s really positive to see these houses opening and I know that they will be happy homes for families, especially as I know that some of them are coming from homeless accommodation,’ she said.
Noel Rock, Fine Gael TD for Dublin North West, defended the site being used for private houses in 2016, and councillor Ms Reilly thinks it is ironic that Mr Rock’s party leader, Mr Varadkar, will now open the social housing development.
‘I suppose it shows the scale of the housing crisis when the Taoiseach is coming out to Ballymun to celebrate the opening of 42 units,’ she said.
‘It shows the scale of the housing crisis’