Local TD and Government Chief Whip, Hildegarde Naughton, yesterday announced that €150 million is to be made available to tackle long-term vacancy and dereliction in towns and cities throughout the country.
Galway City Council will receive €3 million and Galway County Council €2 million. These allocations were made after submissions by the local authorities which identified projects which could deliver almost 5000 residential units nationwide.
Local authorities will receive a grant for the entire 100% cost of acquiring suitable properties identified within their communities, reflecting the high priority the Government has placed on boosting accommodation and tackling dereliction It complements several existing schemes to tackle vacancy and dereliction.
“We are all aware of the blight of derelict and vacant properties within our communities in Galway. Both Galway City and County Council have now identified vacant or derelict properties in Galway which can now be acquired and be put to use as badly needed housing,” she said.
“The emphasis on dereliction and vacancy in this current package is sensible. Not only will it provide housing, but it will also improve communities in our villages, towns and cities. With this latest measure, we now have a comprehensive set of measures in place to make sure that everyone – individual buyers, developers and local authorities – are incentivised to bring properties back into use,” Minister Naughton said.
“Supply is the answer to our housing problems, not fighting about how that supply is delivered. The Government are spending historical amounts on increasing housing supply throughout the country and this is the latest measure that will both increased supply and provide better communities,” she concluded.
