Council income from development levies is cut in half

Date Published: 10-Feb-2010

Contributions paid to Galway County Council by property developers and individuals building houses have fallen by a whopping €6 million since the height of the boom – down to less than half of the total income from this source in just two years.

In 2007, the local authority collected nearly €10 million in levies, but that fell to €6.6 million in 2008 – with just €4.1 million paid in last year.

Development levies are paid as a form of tax on building work and are then re-invested into water services, roads and recreation amenities across the county.

However the collapse in the construction sector has led to a massive reduction in the payments which will severely impact on the council’s ability to deliver services to the public.

The local authority is also dealing with massive losses in central funding allocations and a council source has admitted that any planned water and sewerage works along with amenities such as playgrounds, parks and swimming pools will not now advance as quickly as initially anticipated due to funding issues.

Mayor of County Galway and developer Tom McHugh said that he feared worse may be yet to come.

“The figures are indicative of the times and there is no light at the end of the tunnel, I predict this year will be even worse and the levies paid will be lower.

“The contributions are used in a variety of ways to support the provision of infrastructure and there is no doubt these services will be impacted upon, things that were supposed to be done are obviously not going to be done,” he said.

See full story on front of Connacht Tribune