City council votes against discussing mass eviction
Residents Brendan Duffin, Kate Roche, and Eamon Stack outside Chorister's House in Cork City. Picture: Chani Anderson
Cork’s city councillors voted against discussing a mass eviction crisis facing residents of a city apartment block at Monday’s council meeting — a move described as “an insult to the tenants”.
The criticism was levelled by Solidarity councillor Brian McCarthy after councillors voted against his proposal to seek a suspension of standing orders to discuss the issue facing the tenants of the Choristers building on Dean St.
The reported last week how tenants in 24 units in the listed building were served eviction notices by their private landlord on May 30 last.
Some residents were told they need to leave by November 27, while tenants with longer tenure must quit by January 10, 2024. Just four tenants have found alternative accommodation.
Tenants there have appealed to the city council to use the tenant in situ scheme to buy the building before they face homelessness.
But councillors voted against his proposed suspension of standing orders, pushing a council debate on the issue back to a housing policy committee meeting next month.
Mr McCarthy criticised the 15 “Government party councillors” who voted against the debate, describing it as “an insult to the tenants facing eviction”. The city council did not respond to requests for comment on the issue on Monday.
Later in the meeting, councillors approved Part 8 planning for a 70-unit local authority-built affordable housing scheme on a strip of land immediately east of the existing Heathfield estate at Carriganarra in Ballincollig.
It will include 42 three-bedroom two-storey semi-detached houses, 12 three-bedroom two-storey townhouses, and 16 two-bedroom two-storey townhouses.
Fianna Fáil councillor Colm Kelleher said: “These homes in Heathfield will be aimed at the squeezed middle, in particular those that need a leg up, that can’t get the entire amount approved in relation to mortgage approval.”
Fine Gael councillor Garret Kelleher also welcomed the scheme, and paid tribute to the council’s housing staff for addressing the issues raised during the public consultation process, while Green Party councillor Colette Finn said more sustainable transport options are needed in Ballincollig.
Fianna Fáil councillor Fergal Dennehy said the scheme is one of several housing schemes the council has approved in recent months, while party colleague Sean Martin called on Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould to withdraw his comments that the executive of Cork City Council doesn’t “give a shit” about social housing tenants or working class people, which were made at a protest in The Glen last week.
“In 25 years in here, I’ve never seen the amount of housing going on that I've seen in the last three or four years,” said Mr Martin.
The Part 8 report on the Heathfield scheme said it represents a natural extension to the existing Heathfield estate.
It said the development site, which is close to preferred routes for the Northern Ring Road and the eastern and western spine link roads due to link Kilumney to Maglin, was assessed again in relation to the future road projects, and no issues were found in terms of the housing development impeding on plans for future infrastructure.
It also said the lands form part of the South Ballincollig (Maglin) Urban Expansion Area — a strategic 220-hectare landbank to the south of the town and north of the N22 — with figures from the council's housing delivery action plan 2022 identifying a shortfall of 2,830 residential units to address the housing need in Ballincollig.
