Independent Ballina town councillor Gerry Ginty hit out at this week’s Ballina Town Council meeting at the Government’s plans for raising the housing stock of the council, by getting town councils to enter into letting agreements for newly built homes with developers rather than the council itself building houses.
“This seems like a dig out for the people who were there for them,” Cllr Ginty told the meeting. “If these all enter the housing market it will raise the price of rents falsely. And why does it have to be new builds, not second hand homes that people have bought, it all smells of something.”
Fianna Fáil councillor Johnny O’Malley told the meeting: “I have raised this issue before and will again, rather than entering into long term leasing agreements with developers would it not be better to invest the money in redeveloping our own housing stock? There are a number of houses in Tyrawley Park which we have in our control which could really do with getting redeveloped and would be a better use of our money.”
There was support for Cllr Ginty’s and Cllr O’Malley’s positions on the issue. “I support the earlier speakers, it’s a red herring to get the builders out of trouble,” Independent councillor Peter Clarke said. Fine Gael councillor Michelle Mulherin told the meeting: “No tradesman will get a job from this plan to rent new builds, while if we went along the lines of Cllr O’Malley’s approach in Tyrawley Park, there would be some hope of some of them getting a job.”
