Scheme to upgrade Dublin's oldest flats at risk over Department of Housing funding decision

Irish Times

23-04-2025

Plans to regenerate some of
Dublin
city's oldest flat complexes are at risk following a Department of Housing decision not to fund projects that result in a significant reduction of homes.
The department has rejected the first phase of Dublin City Council's long-planned redevelopment of Pearse House off Pearse Street in the city centre that was built almost 90 years ago. The redevelopment involves the amalgamation of small flats, which do not meet minimum size standards, to create larger homes.
The council seven years ago announced plans to regenerate more than 6,000 of the city's oldest and most dilapidated flats under a 15-year plan to raise social housing standards across the city.
More than 100 flat complexes were to be included in the programme. All were more than 40 years old and some, such as St Michan's House and Chancery House near the Four Courts, Oliver Bond House in the south inner city and Pearse House and Markievicz House on Townsend Street, were built in the 1930s.
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Most of the 109 complexes did not meet current building standards regarding accessibility, fire safety and building quality, while a significant number had mould, condensation and sewage problems, the council said.
The council was the subject of a ruling from the European Committee of Social Rights in 2017 over the poor condition of some of its older flats complexes. The Strasbourg-based committee found the human rights of tenants had been breached because of a failure to provide them adequate housing.
Assessments were conducted on several complexes to determine whether they required demolition or 'deep retrofit' which could involve amalgamations of some flats, as well as extensions and the addition of floors to blocks.
In some cases, particularly in the oldest complexes, several of which are protected structures, adding floors or extensions was not viable.
In May 2018, the council's then head of housing Brendan Kenny said it should consider removing some blocks from the record of protected structures so they could be demolished to make way for new apartments.
In November 2018, then Sinn Féin cllr Chris Andrews, now a Senator, formally proposed delisting Pearse House and Markievicz House as they were 'literally crumbling', no longer fit for habitation and should be replaced with 'decent modern accommodation'.
However, the council's architects division refused the delist and the council said it would instead undertake retrofitting and amalgamation work.
In 2020, it produced plans for Pearse House, a complex of 345 flats designed by renowned architect Herbert Simms and built between 1936 and 1938. The project would be completed in 11 phases over 12 to 15 years, reducing the number of flats to between 215 to 275.
The council submitted plans to the department for the first phase, amalgamating 78 flats into 44 new units. The department has in recent weeks refused to fund the project.
In response to queries, the department said it was 'not in a position to support proposals that would result in a significant loss of homes'.
The council said it was 'progressing the planning and design work for several flat complex regeneration schemes across the city' that include 'a mix of both new build and retrofitted buildings'.
It said that the department had 'expressed their view that we should work to avoid a reduction in unit numbers wherever possible'.
'We have taken on board this advice and will apply it to the Pearse House regeneration project and will also consider as part of the design development for all of our other projects as well,' the council said.
Mr Andrews said he had initially put forward the motion to delist because of the 'complete inertia about the maintenance of the flats'.
He hoped the council's subsequent plans would be successful, but he said after what was a 'ridiculously drawn out process' the department had refused funding because it was getting additional housing.
'If the department can't accept that it's impossible to get additionality on a 1930s building, there will never be any regeneration of them and that's the depressing thing,' he said.
Neil Maloney, chairman of the Pearse House Residents Association, said the community had been 'completely sideswiped' by the news.
'After all this time we were hopeful it was going to happen.'
Mr Maloney's family of six lives in a two-bed flat. 'We're all on top of each other. There's damp and mould, sewage problems, we've been flooded from above, but it's not just us, this is throughout the whole place.'
He said the association would be seeking a meeting with the Minister and the council.
'They need to know you can't raise people's hopes like that, they need to resolve this ridiculous situation.'