‘I might as well be writing to Santa Claus’: councillor renews calls for council to CPO 77 house ‘ghost estate’ in Castlebar
Inaction on a long-vacant housing development on the Ballinrobe Road in Castlebar has again been criticised by a local councillor who has renewed calls for the local authority to use its compulsory purchase powers to bring the site back into use.
The 77-unit development at Saleen, once described as a “ghost housing estate”, has remained unfinished for more than a decade.
It was raised during discussions on the derelict sites levy and the council’s use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs) at the Mayo County Council’s December meeting.
Independent councillor Michael Kilcoyne told officials the Saleen site was “the most derelict site in this town” and reiterated he had raised the issue repeatedly over the years without any progress.
“I’ve raised it 20 times here. I might as well be writing to Santa Claus about it,” he said, questioning why the council had not moved to CPO the development.
“It is not impinging on anyone up there, it is impinging on children in emergency accommodation in Swinford, Crossmolina and Ballyhaunis - and it’s wrong,” he said, “No matter how many times I raise it, nothing happens.”
His comments followed a broader discussion on the effectiveness of the derelict sites levy in Mayo, and the use of CPOs in the county.
Councillors were informed that just under 8pc of the levy due in 2024 had been collected, amounting to approximately €37,000 - the number of sites that were subject to CPO by the council was six, and 18 are in progress to date.
Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Kilcoyne said the most recent update he had received was that discussions had previously taken place between the council and the developer, but the situation on the ground had not changed.
He said the development has been in limbo for around 15 years and that some buyers had paid deposits for homes during construction, only to never receive either their houses or their money back.
Cllr Kilcoyne explained he had raised the issue a number of years ago with the Taoiseach at the time, Castlebar-native Enda Kenny, and asked him to see if the Department of Housing could help Mayo County Council with the finances to acquire the site.
The idea, Cllr Kilcoyne said, was that the council would take over the entire scheme, complete the houses and ensure those who had paid deposits would be refunded.
“This was at a time when the housing crisis was just starting,” he said, “that’s how long this has been going on.”
Cllr Kilcoyne said some of the houses at Saleen are close to completion, with roofs already fitted on a number of units. However, he warned that the continued inaction has ultimately led to the development to go derelict.
“Ultimately someone, someday, is going to have to bulldoze them away,” he said, “They’re going to have to be demolished, and the material is going to have to be put somewhere.”
“Five years ago, if the council had acquired them, they would have been able to save most of them and finish the rest,” he added.
He also highlighted what he described as a contradiction between leaving vacant homes to go derelict, while the State continues to fund emergency accommodation and Housing Assistance Payments (HAP).
“The crows have been making their nests in the chimneys there, while at the same time the State was paying HAP for people in emergency accommodation and in private rented houses,” he said.
“Still nothing is happening, and the state is still paying huge money for emergency accommodation.”
As of the end of November, there were 167 adults and 58 children in private emergency accommodation across Mayo.
Cllr Kilcoyne said the Saleen site should now be acquired through a CPO, and the 77 units brought into use to help meet the county's housing needs.
Figures presented to councillors showed there are currently 287 properties on the derelict sites register in Mayo, with some dating back to the 1990s.
During the meeting, Director of Services Ann Moore told councillors that a CPO process can only begin once it has been requested and funded by central housing.
Councillor Peter Flynn challenged the suggestion that CPOs are a lengthy process, saying that under the former town council system, they could be completed within a year.
“In those days, the town clerk and the town engineer used to move on CPOs within a year,” he said, “We took care of any issues in terms of ownership, in terms of charges and in terms of right of way.”
He described claims that the process takes years as “completely untrue”, adding that CPOs can be delivered within a year “if the right people are doing it”.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.