Independent City Councillor Terry O’Flaherty has called on Galway City Council to carry out a much-needed facelift to the ‘shabby’ exterior of the Walter Macken Place flats complex in Mervue.
She has written several times to a number of City Council officials, going back as far as March 2021, urging them to take steps immediately to have the long-overdue works done.
“Having made repeated requests to the housing section about the condition of the exterior walls of the buildings, It is my understanding that no one from the City Council Housing Department had actually gone out to witness the dreadful condition of the flats until recently when the new Acting Director for housing went out to see at first hand the condition of the six blocks and sheds”, said Cllr O’Flaherty.
The initial refurbishment of the flats was due to a motion she tabled over twenty years ago to carry out improvements to the entire complex and it’s disappointing to see the way the exterior walls have deteriorated despite the fact that the council officials at the time promised that the external façade would be maintenance free.
“I am aware of houses constructed in the 1960s with exterior walls that were maintenance free thanks to the type of cladding such as pebble dash that was used and to this day they have not required any maintenance such as cleaning or painting. Regretfully, the same does not apply to the cladding that was supposed to be maintenance-free on the Walter Macken complex.”
Cllr O’Flaherty pointed out that, following representations by her, funding was to be set aside in the City Council’s 2023 Budget towards cleaning and painting the six blocks, including the sheds.
“As a member of the ruling pact, I had included some additional funding also to go towards the flats, but the former Chief Executive mentioned at one of the plenary meetings that there was adequate funding to cover the costs of the works and that the additional money was not required.”
While she was aware of the staff shortages in the housing department, the Independent Councillor said that she was growing frustrated with the delay in undertaking the works, despite repeated emails sent to Council officials on the issue over the past two and a half years.
“In my opinion the City Council should be embarrassed by the way they have left these flats to deteriorate into their current shabby state.
“However, following a brief meeting with the new Acting Director of Services for Housing, I’m encouraged by her undertaking to make every effort to carry out the necessary works required on the six blocks in the near future, which would be very much welcomed by the residents living in the flats,” added Cllr O’ Flaherty.
