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Before and after shots of St Michael's Road.

‘Irredeemable neighbourhood’ now an example of regeneration

Thirty-seven new homes on St Michael’s Road in Longford Town were opened today.

Updated 21:56

A MAJOR REGENERATION project in Longford has been hailed as a shining example of how housing authorities should work with not-for-profit organisations.

Housing and Planning Minister Jan O’Sullivan visited St Michael’s Road in the town this afternoon to officially open 37 new homes in the recently revamped area.

Before Longford County Council and Clúid Housing Association stepped in, 70 per cent of the properties on the road were boarded up or derelict and many older residents lived in tiny, damp houses.

Others told of sleeping in their living rooms because of dangerous stairs.

During the renovations, some units were amalgamated, turning 58 very small two-bedroom houses into 37 refurbished dwellings.

Houses are now heated using gas-fired condenser boilers and solid fuel stoves. High levels of insulation were also introduced, giving the units good energy ratings.

Illegal dumping became a major issue as litter piled up to the second floor windows outside a number of properties.

The surrounding lanes also brought problems as they became breeding grounds for anti-social behaviour and drug-dealing. Residents also became detached from surrounding communities because the only access points to neighbouring estates were these dark, unsafe alleyways.

During the works, the laneways were cleared and minimised and a new connection road was built in the heart of the area.

A neigbourhood once described as “irredeemable” has been transformed and the public-nonprofit partnership responsible praised as “an exemplar to many other housing associations and local authorities across the country”.

O’Sullivan noted that the not-for-profit Clúid Housing Association had created a sustainable community thanks to its understanding of marginalised communities and the need for a social element of regeneration.

According to the Labour TD, the community is now socially, environmentally, physically and financially secure.

The organisation is keen to work with other local authorities to “bring the irredeemable back to life”, says manager Fiona Cormican, who believes there are about 22 estates in dire need of regeneration across the country.

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First published 13:39

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41 Comments
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    Mute Mac Mock
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    Nov 24th 2013, 8:18 AM

    I’d kill for a Nobel peace prize

    81
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    Mute Frank McDonald
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    Nov 24th 2013, 8:27 AM

    Ah now Sinead, you have to learn the difference between Heads of State and Heads of Government!

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    Mute Dennis Collins
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    Nov 24th 2013, 10:37 AM

    Ah now, Frank, you’ll have to learn that while you’re half right, so is Sinéad. There are some Heads of State (e.g. France and Lithuania) who attend these EU events instead of Heads of Government, depending on the particular country’s laws.

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    Mute Frank McDonald
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    Nov 24th 2013, 12:25 PM

    So they should be referred to as “heads of state or government”. The Queen of England has never been at an EU summit. Our Head of State is Michael D Higgins and he hasn’t been to one either. My point is about accuracy

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    Mute Donal O'Brien
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    Nov 24th 2013, 4:54 PM

    I do recall her sitting next to Bertie Ahern at the knees-up following an eu summit.

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    Mute Derek Richardson
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    Nov 24th 2013, 8:31 AM

    While their gesture is to be commended their economic policicies in other regions and countries are killing and starving other citizens of the world hypocrisy at it.s best

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    Mute Ricky Spanish
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    Nov 24th 2013, 10:03 AM

    Name an EU policy that actively kills non-EU citizens?

    Cos that would be quite a news story!

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    Mute Derek Richardson
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    Nov 24th 2013, 1:05 PM

    Austerity is a killer for many now when you find out find out your own identity I will converse with you not some psyeudnym

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    Mute Kugel Berg
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    Nov 24th 2013, 4:04 PM

    I don’t think anybody is starving to death…

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    Mute Derek Richardson
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    Nov 24th 2013, 5:06 PM

    Ivory tower comments lives on

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    Mute Ricky Spanish
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    Nov 24th 2013, 6:38 PM

    Governments spending within their means is murdering people?

    Hyperbole at best… in truth just a moronic rant that belongs better on a barstool.

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    Mute Derek Richardson
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    Nov 24th 2013, 8:00 PM

    There not spending with in their means their spending everybody elses means to keep them in over inflated wage packets and if nobody is starving why are there soup kitchens popping up all over the place st vincent de paul.innundated with request cappuchin centre over ran with people looking hand outs and as for your hyperbole stick it where the sun dont shine as for bar room rhetoric very seldom frequent them so stick your assumption also where the sun dont shine

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    Mute Mitch Cumstein
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    Nov 24th 2013, 9:02 AM

    How touching. Meanwhile they wage war on their own citizens. Hitting the blind and handicapped through austerity in their own backyard. You would think it was their own money being put to a good use. Oh no they’re far to clever for that they’ve always someone else’s money for good causes.

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    Mute Ricky Spanish
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    Nov 24th 2013, 10:05 AM

    The EU wage war on the blind?

    Finally…. a war the French stand a chance of winning!

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