Dublin City Council pass Labour motion to secure depot sites for housing and community regeneration

At a meeting of Dublin City Council tonight, a motion proposed by Cllr Mary Freehill, and seconded by Cllr Dermot Lacey was passed ensuring that City Council owned land is first prioritised for social and affordable housing.

This will ensure sites, like the depot in Rathmines beside the Swan Centre are retained for public use. The motion referred to a report on the consolidation of 33 depot sites across the city that proposed the sale of a number of properties to fund the new centres.

Cllr Freehill stressed that throughout the city, meetings with local communities have made it clear to the Labour Party that community owned land must be used for community purposes.

“Rather than selling these properties to developers, we have ensured that the Council will project manage future developments, meaning that urban regeneration rather than profit will be the focus of future work on these sites.

“In Rathmines a key district Centre, the local community and Rathmines Initiative are adamant that the Rathmines local depot lands are used for social and affordable housing and key step down housing and a primary care Health Centre.

“On the primary care Centre, this community support has enabled me to ensure meaningful discussions have begun between the council and HSE on the location of a Primary Care Centre on this site.”

The motion passed said:

“This Council notes Report 161/2018 but reiterating its belief that all City Council owned and available land should first of all be prioritised for Social and Affordable Housing and social services.
· agrees that a working group representative of elected members and appropriate Council departments be established out , (amended to Housing SPC to report back)
· Agrees that in the interest of good urban regeneration and the experience to date has shown that urban regeneration is only really successful when it is community lead and the city council has a guiding role in the project management and ongoing urban management when the projects are completed.
· Agrees that it provides a full report giving the size of these sites and their development potential
· Agrees that, as a guiding principal that the development of these sites be project managed by DCC with a view to providing, a mixture of social, affordable, special needs and private out accommodation along with Social Services facilities as appropriate to the site and the area.
· Agrees that recommendations be referred to the relevant area committees for examination as to the priority objectives of members of the area committee and that a full report taking all this into account be presented to the November meeting of the City Council”
ENDS