Councillors call for a ‘masterplan’ to address derelict ‘black spot’ in Mayo town
Dereliction and vacancy levels were once again in the spotlight in Mayo as councillors raised their concerns about the scale of the problem in Ballinrobe.
Bridge Street, in the heart of the town, was described as a “black spot” that is in need of urgent attention.
During the December meeting of the Claremorris and Swinford Municipal District, Cllr Michael Burke tabled a motion calling for a “masterplan” to be developed for the regeneration of the street.
“It is probably the black spot of Ballinrobe, we are not making any progress with [it]. It is time that we got a master plan for the whole street there,” he said.
Cllr Damien Ryan supported the motion, noting some progress being made on derelict sites in the town, but added that more needs to be done.
He praised the Director of Services for Housing, Tom Gilligan, for the progress being made on 14 new housing units that are now under construction across four derelict sites in Ballinrobe.
On Convent Road, an existing structure will be demolished to make way for the construction of two one-bedroom apartments and one one-bedroom bungalow.
Along Creagh Road, three derelict houses will be refurbished into three two-bedroom, two-storey houses.
A property on Castlebar Road will be demolished to allow for the development of four two-bedroom, two-storey houses and one one-bedroom bungalow.
Finally, on Main Street, a property will be refurbished and extended to create three one-bedroom apartments.
Cllr Ryan acknowledged that there had been delays in getting the work underway, but stressed this was down to issues in “the system” rather than in the council.
Reiterating that more needs to be done, Cllr Ryan informed the meeting he has invited Housing Minister James Browne to Ballinrobe, and said he hopes the visit will take place “as soon as possible”.
Cllr Ryan highlighted a recent project in Carlow, where multiple derelict buildings that had been vacant for 20 years were transformed into 12 new social houses along Dublin Street and Cox’s Lane.
The project in Carlow directly tackled town centre dereliction and helped to revitalise the town centre. Minister Browne opened the new units in June 2025.
Cllr Ryan said Bridge Street would be an “ideal” location for a similar block-wide regeneration project, saying this kind of an approach has a “real impact”.
He also asked that the extra €100,000 allocated in the annual Budget for planning enforcement be directed towards Ballinrobe.
“Planning enforcement has failed this town, and I don’t say that lightly,” he said, “Ballinrobe is the area that needs to be a key focus point next year.”
On the broader issue of dereliction, Cllr Ryan acknowledged that the 31 local authorities had not tackled dereliction and vacancy “the way they should”, and linked this point to the recent Budget decision to transfer responsibility for collecting the derelict sites levy from local authorities to Revenue.
“One thing you can rest assured, Revenue will get their pound of flesh,” he said and added the move will see a “kneejerk” reaction in tackling dereliction.
He urged Mayo County Council to be “more proactive” and said, “Now that the door is open with the Department, we need to look at all the [properties] we should go after vigorously.”
Responding to the councillors, Mr Gilligan acknowledged the scale of the problem at a national level.
“I take no pleasure in saying this, but in reality the vast majority of local authorities have failed in relation to vacancy and dereliction,” he said, while welcoming Minister Browne’s actions to tackle the issue.
He stressed that regeneration must involve more than just housing, “We have to get the mix right. There is an element of housing, of commercial, of public realm - that’s what it is all about.”
Mr Gilligan described Bridge Street as a strong candidate for a regeneration project.
“It will be a great example, we can transform it. It can then be used as a template for other towns,” he said, adding that something “transformative” is needed to change the “landscape in relation to vacancy and dereliction.”
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.