Penrose calls for co-operation in ghost estates crisis

HOUSING and Planning Minister Willie Penrose has called on developers and banks to take a more proactive approach to working out long-term solutions for ghost estates.

Mr Penrose said he is concerned that local authorities were reporting difficulties in getting positive engagement from developers, landowners and financial institutions in trying to solve the problem of unfinished housing developments.

However, the minister also promised an action plan which would deliver progress on the issue over the next year starting with the establishment of a national co-ordination committee to oversee the implementation of recommendations made by an advisory group.

Mr Penrose said the Government would focus on 1,650 developments with significant, outstanding building works, especially 230 with urgent public safety concerns. It is estimated there are 1,764 housing estates partially completed or where no construction work has begun.

A local authorities’ survey identified 23,250 houses and apartments within these developments lying empty as well as almost 20,000 more housing units at varying levels of construction.

Speaking at the launch of the final report of an advisory group, Mr Penrose said the option to do nothing was “neither tenable nor acceptable”. The minister promised that unfinished housing estates where people are already living will be targeted for early action, especially developments where there is no ongoing work or where the developer has effectively walked away from the project.

The report, entitled Resolving Ireland’s Unfinished Housing Developments, called for a more co-ordinated and partnership approach in tackling the problem, while it also recognised the need for a strong legislative and policy framework to speed up the completion of unfinished housing estates.

Chairman of the advisory group, John O’Connor, also encouraged developers and banks to adopt a pragmatic approach in dealing with the problem. “There is no point in waiting for the economy or market to change as these developments are deteriorating day by day,” he said.

The report proposes that developer and receivers draw up a “site resolution plan” to outline their proposals for dealing with unfinished developments. It is anticipated these plans will be submitted to the relevant local authority for appraisal.

Mr Penrose said he hoped 300 such plans for the most problematic of the unfinished housing estates would be completed by the end of the year. However, the minister acknowledged that changes to existing legislation would be required in circumstances where developers and landowners refused to co-operate with local authorities.

Mr Penrose confirmed almost €1.5m of a €5m fund established to carry out emergency works on 230 estates with major public safety issues had been allocated to 10 authorities.