Latest news with #ConstructionIndustryFederation
Irish Examiner
22-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Expert tells conference what Cork Luas needs to deliver on time and within cost
Steady funding and an alignment of stakeholders are the two reasons why light rail Luas tram systems can be delivered at a quicker pace in other European countries. As the public consultation process continues on the specific route for a Luas system for Cork, the Construction Industry Federation's Southern Construct event heard a panel discussion on public transport developments in Cork. Paolo Carbone, Head of Public Transport Capital Programmes, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, who worked on tram systems in other countries, including Italy, Hungary and Austria, said the Dublin Luas was evidence that the economic benefit was far greater than the construction and maintenance costs. "I was here when the headlines in the papers were about cost overruns, about the delays," he said. "But it has enabled housing, it has enabled sustainable growth. Light rail provides connectivity that allows further development by the public and private sectors." In relation to Cork, he said it was important now to take time and "plan it right". Last month, the emerging preferred route for an 18km light rail connection between Ballincollig and Mahon was published. A series of public consultation meetings have been held and submissions from the public are being accepted before a decision is made on the recommended route. Much focus is on the length of time it will take to deliver the project in Cork and the cost. Mr Carbone said: "People often ask what is the difference between delivering in Ireland and delivering in other countries and why Madrid can deliver at a fraction of the cost. There are two reasons. The first is alignment among stakeholders. In those countries, during the delivery there is never a stoppage or a delay. The second is steady funding." He repeated that the Luas system has been a high success pointing to the 54 million passengers carried last year compared to the more than 42 million carried on the Manchester Metrolink, the closest light rail system geographically to Dublin. Read More Watch: Cork Luas light rail system unveiled
Irish Times
18-05-2025
- General
- Irish Times
I have an almost gluttonous appetite for irony, but this is too rich even for my tastes
Last Monday, at about 8am, part of a terrace of Victorian cottages along the Grand Canal in Dublin 6 – properties which have been listed on Dublin City Council's Derelict Sites Register for just under two years, but which had for decades previously been falling into dilapidation – collapsed into the street. It was a warm and sunny morning, and many Dubliners were making their way along that stretch of Canal Road; according to a report in this paper , an eyewitnesses said the falling masonry very narrowly missed a cyclist and a pedestrian walking their dog. It was, it seems fair to say, sheer dumb luck that nobody was killed or seriously injured. Photographs of the property, taken in the immediate aftermath of its collapse, are startling. Almost the entire front of the house has simply fallen into the street, the narrow footpath strewn with rubble and splintered wood. The roof, the whole terrace of which had been entirely covered with plants, has caved in. The building, over many years of total neglect, had simply rotted away and died. Who is responsible for this? In a direct sense, the owner of the building is responsible. And the owner of the building, it turns out, is the Construction Industry Federation , the representative body of the construction industry in Ireland. According to that Irish Times report, the facade of the rotting building had until very recently been concealed by 'a banner advertising a CIF construction safety campaign.' I will freely admit to having an almost gluttonous appetite for irony, but this is a little too rich even for my tastes. It's hard to see this incident as anything other than a lurid symptom of a disease that is eating away at Dublin from the inside. As beautiful as many parts of the city are, and as vibrant as it can be, Dublin's problem with dereliction has become something like a definitional one: there is no experience of the place that is not marred by the fact of its many empty and unpreserved buildings, falling into states of advanced putrefaction. READ MORE The front facade of an unoccupied cottage in Ranelagh has crumbled and fallen onto the street, obstructing a footpath. Video: Dara MacDonaill 'Good puzzle would be to cross Dublin without passing a pub,' Leopold Bloom famously reflected, in Ulysses, of his infamously bibulous hometown. An equally good puzzle, more than a century later, would be to cross Dublin without passing a derelict building. There's barely a street in the city centre that isn't marred by abandonment and dilapidation, by boarded up windows and grubby, peeling facades. [ Dublin's vacant buildings: 'It's my property, I'll do whatever I want with it' Opens in new window ] This is both an aesthetic and an ethical blight on the urban environment, encroaching incrementally and relentlessly on the experience of those living in the city. And it's a clear and insistent indication of poverty: a poverty that arises not out of a lack of money, but a lack of civic pride and responsibility, among both the property-speculating classes and the political establishment. In fact, it's a form of poverty that arises out of people having too much money. It's true, of course, that some buildings remain empty for long periods because their owners are very elderly and living in homes, or because they are languishing in complicated probate, or whatever it might be. But in many, many cases, such dereliction is a choice on the part of property owners who are wealthy enough to let a property sit vacant year after year, blighting and corrupting the urban environment, as the land it sits on steadily accrues value in the context of a housing crisis (or a seller's market, depending on which side of the threshold you're on.) It takes considerable wealth, that is, to make a city feel so impoverished. [ Land hoarders 'laughing' at local authorities as €20.5m owed in unpaid derelict site levies Opens in new window ] All this dereliction, all these residential neighbourhoods with boarded-up houses and shopping streets with dead and dormant retail units, is a result of a totally dysfunctional attitude toward property and property ownership. On the evidence of Dublin's sheer volume of empty buildings – more than 14,500 homes and commercial units vacant for over four years, according to data collected earlier this year by An Post – the State's view of the issue seems to be that, well, it's a shame, of course, but we can't prevent people doing whatever the hell they want with their own property. But this is deeply antisocial behaviour, of a scale and impact of which, typically, only powerful groups are capable. It's antisocial not just in the sense of the destruction of a shared environment (though it is certainly that), but in the sense that it reveals a deeper carelessness about, and disdain for, the experience of fellow citizens. (There are parts of Dublin, as Hugh Linehan forcefully put it in this paper last February, that feel 'like a city designed by people who despise its inhabitants.') [ Derelict Dublin: Too often, it feels like a place designed by people who despise its inhabitants Opens in new window ] For those who are suffering in various ways from this country's housing crisis – the growing number of homeless, the young (and no longer so young) who have lost all hope of owning their own homes, or of living anywhere close to where they work – these derelict properties amount to a profound insult, like watching someone throw out untouched food when you are convulsed by the pain of hunger. As Rory Hearne put it in Gaffs, his book about the housing crisis, this is a 'viscerally pernicious inequality. Those without access to homes can literally touch and see derelict buildings abandoned because the owners have an excess of wealth and property.' But let's say you don't care about that. Let's say, for the sake of argument, you don't care about people who are living on the streets or who can't afford a home. Let's say that you have somehow managed to exist in such a way that no one you know or particularly care about is detrimentally effected by this apparently very wealthy country's confounding inability to provide affordable housing for its citizens. Even then, you've still got to live in the place, haven't you? You've still got to look at the place. And it's dispiriting, day after day, to move through a city so badly disfigured by dereliction, where you're never quite sure whether a gigantic banner bearing a message about construction safety might hide a facade that is about to collapse on top of you, like a hazardously over-stacked metaphor. We should have more respect for our capital city, and for ourselves, than to tolerate this situation, and those who have created it.
Irish Times
17-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Property dereliction is antisocial behaviour perpetrated by the rich – it can no longer go unpunished
The dysfunctional state of Ireland's housing market was perfectly illustrated by the recent collapse of a derelict cottage on Dublin's Grand Canal . As hard as it might be to believe, this property is owned by the very people who are supposed to represent Ireland's builders. Last week it was revealed that in the middle of a housing crisis , when every property should be occupied, the owner of a small terrace of derelict cottages on a prime site in Ranelagh was none other than the Construction Industry Federation (CIF). Let that sink in for a minute. The organisation that has presided over this episode of urban decay, allowing dwellings to fall into ruin, is the lobby group whose members are supposed to be building the country. Only in Ireland. This represents policy dysfunction on a monumental scale, laid bare in a micro-aggression against society at large. You might think the term aggression is over the top, but it's not if you regard dereliction as an antisocial behaviour that spreads from one property to another and from one street to the next. We are used to hearing the 'antisocial behaviour' label to describe a gang of young lads in hoodies hanging around a street corner threatening passers-by. It is considered antisocial because it detracts from the sociability and cohesion of the area. READ MORE Dereliction is similarly antisocial but it is perpetrated by rich adults rather than poor youths. Allowing homes and buildings to degrade to such an extent gives permission to other landlords to abuse their property, typically hoarding in the hope of future gain. Dereliction begets dereliction. The more hoarding, the less property available in the city and the higher the overall price of property. The hoarder is quids-in. This must be stopped. Property ownership is more than mere financial asset management: the owners of property are custodians of the urban environment. Apparent indifference is not a victimless crime. The area is the victim. Delinquent behaviour, ie allowing buildings to degrade, undermines the other owners who are acting responsibly by maintaining their properties. That the CIF is abandoning buildings a stone's throw from the city during a housing crisis underscores the lamentable state of the Irish property market. What is the Minister of Housing going to do about this? When an organisation with influence over housing and development policy can show such blatant disregard for the city, we know we have reached a new low in terms of bureaucratic incompetence and rank hypocrisy. We hear people talking on the airwaves about rebuilding Ireland, while at the same time allowing the delipidated buildings they own in Ranelagh fall down during morning rush hour. You couldn't make it up. It is clear that we need substantial fines imposed on reckless property owners Can someone take responsibility, please – if only for the credibility of the State that indulges such organisations? What does it take? A pedestrian, motorist or cyclist to be killed under the crumbling debris? Although it is particularly egregious, the canal episode isn't an isolated incident. GeoDirectory , the data company used by An Post , has estimated that 14,500 residential and commercial properties lie vacant across Dublin , with 4,000 of these occupying prime locations in the city centre. In the past year or so, dereliction has become substantially worse, with a more than 20 per cent increase on the 12,000 or so vacant properties identified by GeoDirectory in the capital in 2023 . Between the two canals are 4,082 vacant buildings. Half of these are commercial, roughly one-third are residential and the remainder are mixed-use. Dublin 2 is the worst offender, home to 41 per cent of vacant buildings, of which the vast majority (75 per cent) are commercial. The Victorian commercial districts of Dublin 1 (Parnell, Talbot, Capel and Dorset Streets) account for more than half (610) of the vacant flats above commercial units. The city is literally falling down in front of our eyes. And while dilapidation in Dublin is particularly acute, the same story applies across Ireland's urban centres, from Drogheda to Cork and Waterford to Limerick. [ Construction Industry Federation owes €140,000 in derelict levies at €23m site of Dublin 6 terrace collapse Opens in new window ] [ Irish Rail seeks 'maximum' number of homes for new Dublin suburb, despite Uisce Éireann warning on capacity Opens in new window ] Dereliction and vacancy are the result of choices made by individuals, companies and even lobby groups like the CIF. It is time to put a price on those choices because dereliction destroys not just the buildings themselves but also the streets. Allowing your building to become derelict must be called out as antisocial behaviour. It is clear that we need substantial fines imposed on reckless property owners, both to change their behaviour and to send a signal. Many of these people are hoarding their buildings in the hope of selling on at a higher price. Such behaviour must be discouraged with a penalty. For example, once a building is categorised derelict by the local council, the owners should face a hefty fine on their total income – not just their property income. Owners shouldn't be permitted to hide behind corporate trickery, allowing them to pretend a different corporate facade to escape the financial consequences of their social irresponsibility. In no time, the property market would be flooded with buildings that were previously hoarded As well as the big stick of punishment, the State might try something softer, at least initially. Realising that people react to incentives, why not incentivise bad owners to sell to good owners who will do something positive with the site? When it comes to vacancy and dilapidation, owners often claim penury, or some legal familial or inheritance dispute to explain why their property is allowed to degrade. So why not issue an amnesty to coax them to sell the properties within a year, after which point a draconian penalty is imposed to make them change their ways. The council might give these owners a chance to avoid a big fine by giving an amnesty – a last chance to sell. If they sell immediately, they can avoid the fine; if not, the council will come down on them like a fiscal ton of bricks. In no time, the property market would be flooded with buildings that were previously hoarded, driving down prices in the city where prices were, up to recently, thought to be only going upwards. This is doable at the stroke of a pen with a bit of political courage. Wouldn't it be great if our politicians tried to fix what's right under their noses as opposed to opining on the global picture, which they can do nothing about? As for the CIF, on behalf of your members – the builders of Ireland – have you no shame?
Irish Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Land hoarders ‘laughing' at local authorities as €20.5m owed in unpaid derelict site levies
Land hoarders 'are laughing' at local authorities and at local communities where they are allowing properties to lie idle and failing to pay €20.5 million in outstanding derelict site levies, the Dáil has heard. Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould hit out at local authorities' failure to enforce derelict sites' levies and said the Minister for Housing had to deal with councils to ensure levies are applied and collected. He pointed to the €140,000 levy left unpaid by the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) for the site on the canal in Ranelagh, Dublin, where one of a terrace of cottages partially collapsed on to the footpath and road, despite being in line for €23 million through the sale of the surrounding site. The Cork North-Central TD said that Good Shepherd convent in his constituency 'burned down a few weeks ago, the fourth major fire there of about a dozen other fires. Someone could have been killed'. He pointed to two other derelict sites in Drogheda where people are afraid to walk for fear of the buildings collapsing on them. READ MORE Raising the issue during Dáil housing questions, Mr Gould said there were 1,913 properties on the derelict sites register as of December 31st, 2023. 'What is shocking is only one in three have been levied,' he said. 'Thirteen local authorities have applied no levies and 17 local authorities have collected zero, not a cent, not a euro.' He added that local authorities applied €5.6 million in levies in 2023. 'Do you know what was collected? €600,000,' he said, pointing out that €20.5 million is owed on the derelict sites levy. He had asked the previous minister about it, yet 'here we are years later' without progress. He had spoken to local authorities and some 'don't want to engage in it'. Mr Gould said the local authorities were not enforcing it and it was the Minister's responsibility to deal with local authorities and ensure they are enforcing the Derelict Sites Act. [ Derelict Victorian houses 'crumbling' six years after €700,000 purchase by Dublin City Council Opens in new window ] 'Land hoarders are laughing at us and laughing at the people in the communities where they're letting these sites lie idle,' he said. Minister of State for Housing John Cummins said the annual levy on derelict sites had been increased to 7 per cent of market value from 3 per cent, 'which will continue to apply until the site is rendered non-derelict'. He acknowledged that 1,913 sites were on the register at the end of 2023. He said the 2024 figures are being collated, but some local councils had not filed their annual return and 'we are reminding local authorities of their obligation to provide data'. He stressed that 'enforcement of the levy is a matter for local authorities' but he said the 'carrot and stick approach' had worked in some areas. The repair and lease scheme worked 'exceptionally well' in his Waterford constituency and 'about 50 per cent of the national total of repair and lease units have been delivered in Waterford' in one- and two-bed units in city and town centre areas. The 'stick approach' of the sites levy and compulsory purchase order where required were available, but what everyone wanted 'is for those properties and those lands to be brought back into productive use'. [ Dereliction levies: why are councils failing to act? Opens in new window ] He said 'there may be a time lag in terms of collection' but the liability remains in place until it is discharged. Fine Gael TD Colm Burke pointed to Blackpool in Cork, 'where we can't do development because a flood relief programme that we identified back 12 years ago is still sitting on someone's desk'. Developers cannot get flood relief insurance and have difficulty in borrowing money to build, he said.
Irish Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Construction Industry Federation in line for €23m site sale but fails to pay dereliction levies
The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) has failed to pay more than €140,000 in derelict site levies owed on a South Dublin terrace that partially collapsed on Monday, despite being in line for €23 million through the sale of the surrounding site. The roof of one of the five Victorian cottages, which had become heavily overgrown with moss and ivy, collapsed just after 8am on Monday, propelling the front wall out into the path and road opposite the Grand Canal in Dublin 6. An eyewitness said debris was scattered over the cycle lane and into the road, narrowly missing a cyclist and a pedestrian walking with their dog. The terrace was until recently covered by a banner advertising a CIF construction safety campaign. [ Collapsed Victorian cottage in Ranelagh is owned by Construction Industry Federation Opens in new window ] In a statement on Monday, the CIF said it 'immediately liaised with Dublin City Council and have taken prompt measures to cordon off the area for public safety. A team has been appointed to carry out works on the site and take appropriate action.' READ MORE The late 19th century cottages at 2-6 Dunville Terrace, facing the Canal close to Ranelagh Road, have been listed on the council's Derelict Site Register since June 2023. To date the CIF, which has owned the vacant homes since the 1990s owes the council more than €140,000 in levies, charged at a rate of 7 per cent per annum on the market value plus 1.25 per cent interest a month on unpaid levies. CIF director general Hubert Fitzpatrick said the levies have not yet been paid. 'We acknowledge that they are due and that will be discharged in due course.' The front facade of an unoccupied cottage in Ranelagh has crumbled and fallen onto the street, obstructing a footpath. Video: Dara MacDonaill The Construction Industry Federation will be compelled to pay the charge to allow the sale of the cottages and the federation's 1970s office blocks Construction House and Canal House, which sit behind derelict houses, to be completed. The CIF and the Construction Workers Pension Scheme have agreed the sale of the adjoining sites to international property developer, Osborne + Co, for a sum understood to be in the region of €23 million. The sale was agreed four years ago, but was subject to Osborne securing planning permission for a redevelopment scheme. An application was made in October 2022 by Rimor Fortis, an Osborne company, for the demolition of all buildings on-site, including the derelict terrace and another free-standing cottage used as a bike repair shop, and their replacement with an eight-storey office scheme. Planning permission was granted last September. However, Mr Fitzpatrick said the sale has yet to be finalised. 'That sale has not been concluded,' he said. 'Rimor Fortis applied for planning permission in respect of the development, it would be normal practice in any transaction that [the] sale was subject to planning.' In the meantime the derelict terrace, and its collapse, continued to be the responsibility of CIF, said Mr Fitzpatrick. 'We have taken full responsibility for the issue and we are ensuring that all public concerns are being attended to.' A previous assessment of the buildings had determined they were 'structurally safe', he said. 'We had them assessed and it wasn't evident that there was any danger at the time.' Green Party Cllr Hazel Chu, who had sought the reuse of the cottages for housing, said the levy should be increased to provide a greater sanction for owners who leave homes to 'rot'. 'This site should never have been zoned for pure commercial use. I had proposed a rezoning at the time of the development plan [in place since 2022]. In the midst of a housing crisis and growing demand on working from home, we need more sites for mixed-use residential, not less. We also need a proper mechanism and higher levy to ensure developers pay the fine imposed when they leave sites to rot,' she said. 'Councils need money and power to address issues such as vacancy, dereliction, effective planning and housing supply.'
