Fifth family flees troubled council estate

ANOTHER family has fled a Limerick estate plagued by troublemaker residents, bringing to five the number of families which have moved out since the beginning of the year.

People say life at Fairview Crescent, Garryowen has become a living hell and up to 20 families have moved out since it was opened 15 years ago.

One resident said: “We are prisoners in our own homes. We live in fear.”

Cllr Kieran O’Hanlon said the council estate made up of about 40 houses was one of the best laid out and designed in the city.

He said: “We are now spending tens of millions to regenerate other estates, and we allow a few families to cause havoc in Fairview Crescent, which is going down the swanny. I fear that it could end up like places in Moyross and Southill with houses boarded up and we will be into another regeneration situation.”

Mr O’Hanlon said the law needs to be changed so that families who are evicted from council estates for anti-social behaviour cannot get funding from the HSE to acquire private rented accommodation.

“Ordinary decent people have the right to live in peace and comfort. Here we have a situation with children causing trouble, egged on by the parents,” said.

He said it may be time to hold a referendum on the constitutional right of a person to have a home.

A spokesperson for Limerick City Council confirmed that five families had moved out since January, the latest at the weekend.

The spokesperson said the tenancy unit at the council was doing everything it could to get some residents at Fairview Crescent to moderate their behaviour and there were a number of legal cases pending.