The construction of 50 new homes for O’Devaney Gardens in Dublin should be finished within 18 months. Work is beginning today, 10 years after the initial regeneration project for the area collapsed.
It will include a mix of social, affordable and private homes and is part of a larger plan to build 600. At present more than 7,000 people waiting for public housing in Dublin Central.
The site was originally developed as a social housing scheme in 1954 with 278 apartments in 13 four storey blocks.
The site was to have been redeveloped under a public-private partnership between the Council and a private developer, but that deal collapsed in 2008 following the economic downturn.
At that time the site was largely cleared to make way for the redevelopment with tenants being rehoused and blocks demolished.
In 2010, the Council produced a Masterplan for the gross site of O’Devaney Gardens and the Masterplan was further revised in November 2016.
The City Council issued Part 8 permission in 2016 for the demolition of the remaining four apartment buildings on the site.
Fianna Fáil’s Mary Fitzpatrick has said that developing the O’Devaney Gardens site to its full potential will take more than opportunistic photo-ops and sod turning ceremonies.
“O’Devaney Gardens has been lying idle for more than a decade and when the residents were removed to pave way for construction they were promised that they would be rehomed on the site in higher standard, more modern accommodation in a regenerated development.
“We had all hoped locally that we would see a building programme announced that meets the varied needs of our community. O’Devaney Gardens is a land bank with huge potential for meeting these needs.
“While it’s welcome that they have finally, after 10 years commenced the project, announcing the beginning of construction for 56 units on a 14 acre site is nowhere close to the development expected and needed.
“This is State owned land; it should be used for the benefit of the people and we simply cannot wait another 10 or more years for the site to be properly developed.
“I call on the Government to get real with an accelerated plan to put the site to full productive use to address the chronic housing need,” she concluded.
The Lord Mayor of Dublin, along with Ministers Murphy and
Donohue turn the sod on the first phase of the Regeneration of O’Devaney
Gardens which will see the construction of 56 new social homeshttps://t.co/mWBwQIMz37 …https://t.co/0AM9yuntId pic.twitter.com/gEDx2ZnlSE— DCC Housing (@housingdcc) July 4, 2018
With @Paschald this morning in O’Devaney Gardens to Mark the start of regeneration in the area which will ultimately deliver over 600 homes. pic.twitter.com/Oef70Odljc
— Eoghan Murphy (@MurphyEoghan) July 4, 2018
