Cork tenants face freezing Christmas in row over heating with city council
Residents of the Glenamoy Lawn and Ard Bhaile housing developments in Mayfield have spoken out against the council, saying that their houses are “absolutely freezing”.
The local authority developments were built in the 1970s and feature a district heating system with one central boiler to serve all units.
Since the initial development, however, the number of units has risen by around 50 homes to more than 200 units, which is thought to have overstretched the heating system.
Paula Saunders, who lives in Ard Bhaile, said the residents there have been dealing with the issue for the past 20 years.
“From day one the heating never worked properly,” she said.
“The plumbers come up, they tinker around, but it doesn’t fix anything.
“We’re freezing. I get coal for the fire when I can afford it but that doesn’t heat the whole house. There are old people up here and they’re putting on heaters to heat themselves and the ESB bills are coming in and they can’t pay them. It’s a disgrace what’s happening up here.”
Her grandchildren stay at her house every Saturday night and she says they’re so cold it’s “like being out on the road”.
“People are paying their rents and they’re not being looked after. I’m being ignored by the council, we all are. I want them to fix the problem properly so we can all have heat and be comfortable in our houses, not freezing with the cold,” she said.
Fellow resident Paul O’Connell is also angry at the council.
“I’ve been banging my head off the wall there for months ringing them and they just won’t get back to me,” he said.
“I haven’t gotten the chance to explain to anyone in the council, it’s all just short answers and answering machines.
“I’ve been sitting through this for the past six years. You might as well be outside. The place is constantly freezing and is damp and gets flooded.”
Mr O’Connell said part of the problem with his apartment was to do with the windows.
“The windows are so bad, they’re badly fitted single panes and the latches don’t connect properly,” he said.
“I’m on the third floor but woodlice are managing to come up through the window. It’s just a comedy of errors.
“My kitchen has flooded five times in the last six years — the pipes are antiquated, even the plumbers say so.”
City councillor Ted Tynan has spoken out on behalf of the residents.
“The system seems to function when demand for heating is average but when cold snaps such as the present one occur the heat doesn’t get to some of the homes,” he said.
“It can only be one of two problems. Either the capacity is not able to provide for the demand, or the underground pipes are leaking. Either way, something is seriously wrong,” he said.
The councillorsaid the units were regenerated a number of years ago, and again in 2013, but that neither overhaul managed to fix the problem.
“We’re back to square one having spent a lot of money,” he said.
“The City Council has a duty of care to their tenants. Those people pay their rent and this is a breach of contract. Their chief executive should take a stand on this.”
A spokesperson for Cork City Council said that significant remedial works were carried out in 2013 to the district heating sys-tem.
“Ongoing problems in individual units are being attended to on an ongoing basis as resources permit. There are no design capacity issues with the system.”
