After The Currency reported the idea of the council moving its HQ, councillors were talking about and thinking through the pros and cons and implications.
The scaffolding of our city is suffering from systematic disinvestment, writes Mick Byrne, a researcher at UCD’s School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice.
Some councillors argue that Dublin City Council carries out unnecessary and costly works on vacant council homes, when they’re in decent condition and tenants are eager to move in.
Public provision of public housing used to be commonplace in Ireland, but then we shifted to rely more on the market. It’s not working, says Andy Storey.
When Dublin City Council says that less than 1 percent of its housing stock is “void”, some Dubliners are confused. That might be because of how it counts.
There aren’t delays at the Department of Housing right now, Keegan told councillors. The council is slow in getting projects to the department for approval.
In an April letter to minister Alan Kelly, Dublin City Council chief Owen Keegan suggested that the rule encouraged people “to enter the ‘homeless’ system”.
“Vacancy watch!” wrote in Davey Donnelly, with a photo of an apartment block on James Street. “Vacant as long as I’ve been in the area.” What’s the story?
More than 1,000 people have offered to help do up empty council houses or “voids” for homeless families. But it’s unclear if this effort will gain traction.
At their monthly meeting on Monday, councillors voted to press ahead with the first major Dublin City Council housing project since the economic crash.
It’s unlikely they’ll get a reprieve, but there are a stack of arguments as to why now is a bad time to offer to sell homes to social housing tenants at massive discounts.
