Lack of affordable homes in Mayo prompts calls for action ahead of annual budget meeting
Social housing delivery has garnered a lot of attention in Mayo this year, with the opening of 61 new homes across Murrevagh Close in Mulranny and Bog Road Demesne in Westport, alongside the announcement that 37 units in Lios na Circe, Castlebar, are going to tender.
While these developments are widely welcomed as progress towards meeting social housing targets, local representatives are beginning to turn their attention to the lack of affordable housing in the county.
Only five affordable homes have been delivered in Mayo since 2012, and these were delivered as part of the Bog Road Demesne Estate in Westport.
While housing prices continue to increase around the country, and the latest Daft.ie reports showing a three-bedroom semi-detached home in Mayo averaging at €254,000, many people are being priced out of the market, and at the same time would not qualify for social housing.
At November’s meeting of the Ballina Municipal District, councillors welcomed the ongoing progress on various housing projects locally. However, the issue of affordable homes was raised.
Cllr Marie Therese Duffy said she had been approached by numerous constituents who had raised concerns about the lack of affordable housing options in Ballina.
“For every housing development that is proposed to us here, we have pushed for affordable housing to be included in the schemes as mixed developments. We want at least 10pc of houses in each scheme to be allocated as affordable,” she told the meeting.
She also called for an affordable housing survey to be conducted in the Ballina area and added, “There is a massive demand for it, and even though the prices are very high, it would be a start for people trying to get on the property ladder.”
Cllr Duffy questioned whether Mayo County Council had made any application for affordable housing schemes in Ballina and, if not, why not.
“There is an affordable housing fund available in Dublin and the department wants applications from County Councils,” she said and stressed the importance of including affordable housing delivery in all new schemes.
Her proposal for an affordable housing survey and a requirement that 10pc of homes in new estates be designated as affordable was seconded by Cllr Jarlath Munnelly.
Cllr Duffy added that affordable units could still be included in both the Duffy’s Bakery and Cheshire Homes sites, which have both gone through part eights.
The five affordable homes in Westport were added after Bog Road Demense had gone through a part eight.
“It’s not too late for that to be done. I am pushing for that with the Duffy’s Bakery and Cheshire Homes site,” she said.
Cllr Duffy requested an update at the next meeting on any submissions Mayo County Council has made to the Department of Housing regarding affordable housing in Ballina, and confirmed she would also raise the issue at the Budget meeting.
Declan Turnbull, Head of Ballina Municipal District, acknowledged the need for affordable homes but explained that submitting an application to the Department of Housing is the final stage of the process.
Before that, he said, the council must negotiate with the Department on the possibility of affordable housing on specific sites, and the number available depends on housing costs in the area.
He confirmed that negotiations are ongoing and that both the Duffy’s Bakery and Cheshire Homes sites are included as part of them.
At the council’s Housing Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) meeting in September, it was revealed that a private developer in Castlebar hopes to deliver 20 affordable units, while another in Westport is in talks to deliver 11.
While councillors welcomed this as progress, several said it fell far short of what is needed, and argued that relying solely on private developers would barely make a dent in the county’s need for affordable homes.
Cllr Brendan Mulroy urged the council to seek a loan to help begin the delivery of affordable homes on the 470 acres of newly zoned council-owned land approved in September.
“Affordability is the way to go now, alongside social housing. We have been proactive in relation to social housing across the county, now it's time for the affordability to step up,” he said.
The SPC concluded by recommending that the council consider seeking a loan in their November budget and commission a new countywide affordable housing survey.
With Cllr Duffy’s proposal for a Ballina-focused affordable housing survey, and her intention to raise the matter again at next week’s Budget meeting, the issue of affordable homes is likely to be a key topic for discussion.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.