One Street shows the way on Housing Crisis

25 October 2017

In advance of a sod turning ceremony for 19 new homes in Beech Hill, Dublin 4, Labour Leader on Dublin City Council, Councillor Dermot Lacey highlighted that it has taken several years and many obstacles had to be overcome for him to advance the project to this point, but that it provides a template for how to solve the housing crisis.

Cllr Lacey said:

“As we prepare to welcome An Taoiseach and the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government this Thursday ( 26th October) to conduct a sod turning ceremony for nineteen new homes in Beech Hill, Donnybrook it is worth reflecting that on this one street nearly all the strategies to improve our Social and Affordable Housing crisis have actually been implemented.

“Standing on Beech Hill Terrace, a short road roughly half the length of a football field, you can see infill private housing, nine new affordable homes delivered through a local housing Co-Operative, five new social homes delivered by Dublin City Council and now nineteen new homes to be delivered through a Voluntary Housing Association. All built on what you might call “left over” or Council lands.

“If this can be done in the heart of Dublin 4 it can be done anywhere.

“By my reckoning there are approximately 200 villages or parishes across the Dublin area. If each of these were facilitated to deliver a similar number through local housing initiatives assisted by and not hindered by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government we could deliver approximately 6,800 new homes quickly and through the Credit Unions, could be financed locally and off the National Balance sheets.

“It is time for Minister for Housing Murphy to look outwards and not into a Department singularly incapable of doing the job.

“Let the Local Authorities provide the planners, the architects, the quantity surveyors and other staff needed. Local Communities can provide the local expertise and indeed the future tenants. We need all kinds of new solutions. Here is one contribution and in our case – we have delivered.”

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