We will deliver homes and infrastructure for our communities

Imminent new projects will unlock the potential of the fast-growing areas most in need of new

Ireland’s housing supply challenge is most acute in Cork and Dublin. These are the areas where demand is highest, where our economic growth is greatest, where demographic trends are strong.

A significant proportion of the national annual requirement of more than 25,000 new homes every year will be built in Cork and Dublin. We have seen recently that there are strong signs of recovery in terms of residential development to get us moving towards that target.

All of the data show upward trends in activity in terms of planning permissions, commencements, and completions; indeed, completions reached approximately 15,000 homes in 2016.

This is short of where we need to be, but a significant step towards that point, but we need to also bear in mind that we need not only to meet annually arising demand, but also deliver sufficient numbers to address the prolonged under-supply we built up over the last eight to nine years.

So, things are moving in the right direction. Another positive is the fact that we have the lands on which to provide the homes we need. In Cork, and across the country, there are key strategic sites that have the potential to deliver in very significant numbers and get us to where we need to be to fix a problem that has significant social and economic impacts — we need homes for our people, and we need people living in the right areas to support economic investment.

However, these sites have been in suspended animation for a number of years now, caught in a sort of Catch-22: they require supporting infrastructure to unlock them, and free up delivery of housing — but local authorities have not been in a position to invest in that infrastructure.

Willing developers, willing local authorities, and aspiring households are all caught in a very frustrating cycle as otherwise viable lands lay idle due to a lack of enabling infrastructure.

I have announced funding of almost €46m to support six infrastructure projects to end that cycle in Cork city and county, as part of a national investment of over €220m.

It is not an understatement that this investment will help transform the shape of the city of Cork.

• A new spine road and energy infrastructure at Old Whitechurch Road;
• A link road in Midleton to facilitate access and create potential for competitive delivery in 2019 and 2020;
• Transport and amenity infrastructure to provide housing in a key area for large employment developments at South Docks;
• Critical investment in roads infrastructure in Carrigaline, Ballincollig, and Glanmire.

These projects will kick-start much-needed delivery in the places they are needed most. They will be delivered mainly through funding from the Government with part funding from Cork city and county councils.

In relation to the Whitechurch road site, major work needs to happen in terms of road access, moving of overhead lines, and widening roads to ensure this 22-hectare site is developed to its maximum potential.

We are looking at up to 600 new dwellings on this site in the short run. But the most exciting aspect of this plan is what is in store for the south docks in Cork city.

Between the north and south docks and the Tivoli, there is potential for 20,000 housing units over time. The focus for now is on the south docks.

To make this happen, a lot of enabling infrastructure needs to happen first and that is why we are spending €15.5 million on the south docks in this first phase, and I would hope down the line we will get more money to develop it further.

This fund is a key element of Pillar Three of Rebuilding Ireland, the Government’s Action Plan for Housing & Homelessness.

In total, it will support 34 infrastructure projects including roads, bridges, environmental upgrades, and community amenities, removing infrastructural blockages that are currently holding back delivery of 23,000 new housing units across the country in the next four years, and up to 70,000 units over the next ten years as the sites are fully built out.

This week’s announcement shows just how effective the public sector can be in supporting wider delivery when central and local government work in close collaboration with a strategic vision and innovative mindset.

These are very targeted projects which have been identified to deliver the best return in a short space of time.

Let me be clear — this is a cross-government approach which will see us develop communities, and not just houses as happened in the past.

I’m really pleased that in Cork alone the fund will help deliver 3,040 new homes by 2021, and almost 10,000 new homes over the longer term.

By any measure, this is hugely significant for Cork, but I hope it will not stop there: I will be advocating strongly for a further round of funding as part of the Government’s Capital Plan Review later this year, and I hope that other key sites in the city and county will benefit soon.

• Simon Coveney is the Minister for Housing and is a Fine Gael TD for Cork South-Central.