Taskforce to look at ways to speed up housing supply

Galway City Council is to set up a housing supply coordination taskforce to examine ways to speed up the construction of new homes.

With only 255 units built in the city since 2012, the Draft City Development Plan (CDP) 2017-2023 acknowledges there is a major shortage of housing of all types.

With the population projected to grow to 98,700 by 2022, there will be a need for 8,245 new housing units over the next eight years.

The current waiting list for social housing of 4,458 is projected to grow to 5,706 households in that period.

Just 518 social housing units will be built within the next three years by Galway City Council.

However there are no plans to increase zoning for development to encourage that construction.

The Plan directs housing to be developed on key brownfield sites in the city centre, on the designated growth area of Ardaun and through infill and consolidation within existing housing areas.

“The Development Plan demonstrates that there is sufficient land zoned to allow for the housing need to be met but some of these lands will require infrastructural investment,” the blueprint states.

One of the key elements of the plan is to set up a housing supply coordination taskforce to investigate measures to expedite construction of housing in the city.

There is a stipulation in the plan that the demolition of existing properties to build higher-density properties in the outer suburbs, established suburbs or inner residential areas “will not be acceptable” .

However, a loophole remains “where it is demonstrated that the proposed development would make a positive contribution to the area’s urban design and where it does not represent a major intervention into or redevelopment of the urban fabric”.

At least one fifth of new development in the city centre must be residential. On certain key sites in the city centre such as the Ceannt Station lands, Inner Harbour lands and the Headford Road, a higher residential content of 30% will be required.

The council will look into redeveloping the City Council car park at Bowling Green to meet social housing needs.

Chairman of the housing Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) Cllr Declan McDonnell said there was virtually nothing contained in the CDP to address the chronic housing waiting list – 8% worse per head of population than in Dublin.

“The council are depending on the voluntary housing sector and the long-term leasing schemes but these are not going to satisfy the housing needs of Galway because there’s simply no housing being built,” he insisted.

“We need a serious input in housing – it doesn’t have to be local authority housing – but there should be something to stimulate development because of the absolutely ridiculous numbers we have here. We have the land, it’s the funding that’s the problem.”

Interest on land bought by the council at the height of the boom – most of which remains undeveloped – is costing Galway City Council over €600,000 a year.

The plan outlines environmental improvement schemes for Mervue, Claddagh, Shantalla and Bohermore to improve the quality of life for residents, reduce traffic and reorganise car parking.

Area plans will be prepared for Menlo and Castlegar while a regeneration of open spaces is earmarked for Ballinfoile and Ballybaan.

“The scale and layout of the communal open space in these areas has created pockets of open space lands which are under-utilised and which do not contribute to the urban structure. This can consequently lead to these areas becoming derelict and attracting uses that have no community value,” the plan states.

“Through a high standard of infill development great improvements in environmental quality can be brought about. This infill development could be in the form of community facilities and/or residential development.”

There is nothing specifically in the CDP about Traveller housing, with the Traveller Accommodation Programme 2014-2018 governing council policy.

Submissions for city land zonings can be made until March with debate on the plan expected to take up much of 2016.