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ELEVEN NEW APARTMENTS were unveiled this week in Dublin’s inner city.
St Agatha’s Court on North William Street will provide permanent homes to be people who have been homeless or have faced serious housing issues for years.
The apartments were developed and will be operated by homelessness charity Peter McVerry Trust, which re-developed an existing derelict building
The St Agatha’s Court site was owned by Dublin City Council and scheduled for demolition when it was taken over by the PMV Trust.
A €1.4 million project saw the site re-developed into the 11 apartments. This approach – the renovating of vacant or derelict buildings and bringing them back to use – has been a central approach of the PMV Trust in its efforts to combat housing shortage and the homelessness crisis.
The 11 apartments of St Agatha’s Court brings to 50 the total number of housing units developed by the charity from old buildings.
Vacant dwellings
Figures from the 2016 Census show that there were 183,312 vacant dwellings in Ireland, excluding holiday homes. This figures does not include derelict buildings that are uninhabitable.
In 2014, the PMV Trust began to focus on vacant buildings and derelict sites, looking at how these can be used to increase housing supply.
Instead of focusing solely on new builds, the Trust believes that renovating and reusing existing buildings can be a more cost-effective, quicker and more sustainable way to delivering houses.
It’s first major renovation project was six apartments on Pim Street in Dublin 8, which were originally local authority housing that were declared void.
The charity followed up with subsequent redevelopments in various places around the inner city. The 11 units as St Agatha’s bring their number to 50.
A spokesperson for the Peter McVerry Trust said the charity has “at least” 100 additional units coming on stream in the next three years.
As well as this active use, the Trust also operates the reusingdublin.ie website, which aims to map and track vacant and derelict sites in the capital, as well as raise awareness of the issue.
Part of the government’s housing action plan – Rebuilding Ireland – is focused reusing existing housing stock. This part was due to be put into action in March of this year, but it had been delayed.
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A drop in the ocean.
More and more people are declaring themselves homeless daily.
We need to have some scheme whereby a tenant gets a 5 year lease on low rent to help them get their life back on track. After 5 years you should either pay a fair rent or move out of the city.
The more houses we give the more people who’ll declare themselves homeless.
We also need to stop allowing people to move their children into social housing just before they die so they can hold onto the house and skip the list.
@Theunpopularpopulist: Your right about the moving the family in to “inherit” the council house. But the council lets them do it so you can’t blame them for that – quite clever really.
@Theunpopularpopulist: 100% we should do this. I can’t for life of me understand how a council house is for life. Why get off your bum if you don’t have to? They should be there for those you are in hole and need a bunt getting out. I live beside council houses. Parents dead and gone and the children have them now. In the local, Monday to Sunday.
That practise needs to be stopped . The whole system needs an overhaul. .
Wow they do great work. Sad that they had to do the work of the council. Those flats should never had got in that state in the first place. Renovating buildings is good for lucky few who get a home but more importantly for those living the previously blighted areas. This is regeneration and not about demolishing and building large flat blocks for the “techno kids” or students at huge profit for the developer buddies and further marginalising of the vulnerable. Well done!
@Melissa O’Callaghan: techno techno techno…
@Melissa O’Callaghan: They do the work of the council as the state funds the charity to do the work. Never understand why the system in Ireland is for the government to fund charities to do work on their behalf. We have 26 charities working with homeless in Dublin, that seems quite inefficient and there must be lots of overlap
@Mary Murphy: If they spent money on keeping these buildings going with a planned maintenance strategy, it would be a lot cheaper in the long run and the damage to communities would be minimised. But yes I agree, it’s dysfunctional the way they sub let responsibility for housing, health and education. It’s almost as if the state hadn’t got confidence in it’s own abilities.
If being homeless and unemployed is seen as way for people to get stuff for free, its not hard to join them.
Lets be clear, council houses provided by the state are rented properties.
They return revenue to councils which in turn helps to run the country.
Dont foget the jobs being created in the renovations and the construction of new builds, tradesmen, delivery drivers, architects, engineers, designers etc etc.
This is good for Ireland, and is very good thing for the people who plan to avail of the supports that our country can easily afford to provide.
It helps keeps the property market on an even keel and frees up rental property.
Its all good.
@Stephen Maher:
I agree with 90%of what you said, we desperately need a social building programme.
The only issue I have is the suggestion the the council make a profit from the rental of the properties. The never did in the past and will not in the future. A combination of repairs and maintenance costs being higher and rents being lower for affordability reasons.
Why do you think the councils were wo anxious to get rid of them?
They still need to be built and they will cost money to keep, but there a lot cheaper than hotels!
Not too sure why my comment was removed, why we as tax payers allways punished and the homeless given free homes.
Does anyone know why those flats across from the library in Stillorgan are still boarded up? Seems an awful waste.
@Sian O Sullivan: it’s the money to renovate them for a new family. Friend of mine sold her home to the council. The whole new renovated house was gutted ( new kitchen in the skip) for Health and safety reasons. Beggars belief
@John That is crazy they should be fining the councils. Excellent location close to amenities and transport just left there to become an eyesore.
@Sian O Sullivan:
Why do you think they are reluctant to bring in a vacant site tax? The councils themselves would be the biggest offenders.
@P.J. Nolan: you are right I suspect.
But how are the councils funded to do this massive build?
@lavbeer:
Agreed as things stand the councils don’t have the funding.
There was a suggestion made must be a year ago to create massive contracts similar to the way motorways were built where large multinational companies were given fixed contracts to build maybe 1,000 houses plus roads, schools etc on state owned land with the state keeping ownership of the houses, sell enough to private owners to recover costs some affordable homes and the rest to the council. Large companies know how to get it done on time and on budget
@P.J. Nolan: That doesn’t make sense to me. In the last recession, there were derelict buildings all over Dublin and a law was brought in to deal with that. If the councils are exempt from an existing law, why waste money asking for a duplicate law when surely the very councillors voting on it won’t pass it? There are laws, but the boarded-up houses outnumber them. It is ridiculous. The very people who could be employed to renovate them aren’t finding work, it all seems a bit calculated. I see successful, motivated people in parts of other countries involved in affordable self-build schemes, and they seem to be great neighbours as a result of all the working together. I can’t see why this can’t work here. It did work here in various streets around the country last century.
I’m confused – which is the before and which is the after picture?
The councils budgets and funds were cut . They need to be re introduced to get boarded up council hoses up and running again . Governments fault!
@Suzie Sunshine: caught up in their own red tape and incompetency more like!
@Suzie Sunshine: why not give people the option to take on doer up council houses where they are offered a house but have to work to make it better. Give grants for materials but hard work not provided. A win win situation for those who really want to improve their lot and family homes and communities reinvigorated. I know if I was in that situation I would take it.
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