Too many houses in Westside are left empty and boarded up and have become “a central point for anti-social behaviour and dumping” according to Independent Galway City Central candidate Mike Cubbard.
According to Mr Cubbard, two houses in Carn Ard are boarded up and have been in this condition for four months. Residents allege that one of these premises is being used as a meeting point for under-age drinking.
Three houses in Tullach Ard are in a similar condition with one also being used as a “drinking spot” by youths in the locality. A vacant property in Corruch Bui has become a central point for youths to “hang out” in.
Two houses in Droim Caoin are left vacant, one for four months, the other for three years. A house in Gaelcarrig Park has been empty for six months and Mr Cubbard said it “ frightened me to see the condition it is in”.
“One resident told me it is now being used as a dumping ground,” he said, “and on three separate occasions she has had to inform the Galway City Council of rat infestation.”
Mr Cubbard said it is an “absolute disgrace to have so many houses boarded up, idle, and left in the condition in which they are, when the number of people on the social housing waiting list is about to hit the 3,000 mark”.
He is calling on City Hall to introduce a scheme where once off temporary contracts are offered to the carpenters, plumbers, and electricians, in the city, with an aim to having the properties repaired in a matter of months and families housed as soon as possible.
