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It is feared and unexpected social housing development will lead to a rampant spate of anti-social
behavior in North Claire in 2019, the local authority granted permission for the refurbishment
of the Enestime and Convent to encompass 30 residential units.
It was initially expected that the project would be earmarked for older people, however,
it's understood the properties are now intended for social housing.
Cahirluck of the West Claire Municipal District and Lahinch Finnegale Councilor Bill Slattery,
Bill Emotion that you raised at this meeting of the West Claire MD was that it had what
was previously earmarked for an older person's housing development at the outside of the
old town.
This broadcast package on Claire FM is funded by the local democracy reporting scheme.
Your look of the West Claire Municipal District and Lahinch Finnegale Councilor Bill Slattery,
Bill Emotion that you raised at this meeting of the West Claire MD was that it had what
housing development at the side of the old convent and an assignment, it's now understood
that the developer is favoring making that a social housing estate and, say, the least,
you have a lot of concerns.
I have a lot of concerns, because as you know, I was a certain meeting and this has been
brought to my attention because this planning application went in in 2019 for the village
for the elderly and it was built and in in 2025 last year their planning was dropped and
a new planning application was made for affordable and social housing.
I understand now that these patterns, 31 of them, could be our social housing and where
this site is located, it's such a nice, isolated site, I don't think it's suitable for social
housing.
In that particular area, we've cited two schools and at the back of the convent and
people are worried that this, where it is situated, that this might end up to be a second
kind of a belly-moan building or something like that, it's three stories high and I'm
just afraid if it's all going to be social housing, that it's not going to be good for
an assignment and I want the people in the assignment to know that we'll let them know
what we think is what happened there and let them decide themselves with anti-sort
behavior and stuff like that.
So for that reason, I brought it to the put on a motion with concertality today to bring
it to the attention of the people that we want to let them know, but we think it might
be going here and we want to get clarification on it.
It's just very quickly to say that the point here is that a lack of maintenance and
access to services available, as you mentioned in the meeting, their FUs can lead to certain
conditions over time and that's the fear, basically.
Well, do you go back to the back road and look down at this building and you can see why
I'm so concerned, it's so isolated, it's a tower-like building which is not good for
social housing and we are afraid that a lot of anti-sort behavior and as I said today
at the meeting, clear county council are not good at maintaining social houses even
though the director said today that they were, but from our experience here and in the
assignment and other places like Hiroshi here today, they haven't got a very good record
and we are afraid that this, if this is our social housing, that you'll go to record
room.
An assignment for all councilor Chantal D'Shan, you similarly raised concerns and that
you pointed to the condition that some social housing states in an assignment in North
Claire that were developed in the past are now in.
Yes, so this was a joint motion that we both wanted to highlight as opposed to the council
management and to the public or genuine concerns that if this development is going to become
an entirely social housing development, well, the public understand and know what the
county council's track record and legacy is in in a slam and around those such developments
while there might be award-winning on their development and initial opening, there hasn't
been sufficient management of maintenance and day-to-day management on site and as
opposed to the, as Bill says, this type of building, it's the all kind of building plus
a new one adjacent to it, two, you know, two other, three-story high buildings, a total
31 apartments, just that volume of people housed in in a small location, overlooked in
the secondary school, overlooked in the primary school, relatively isolated site within
the town and just huge concerns that what will that look like in a year and five years
time and ten years time, and what will that do again for the legacy, as I said, to Claire
County Council, how they look after social housing in a slam and in particular.
And what kind of things are you hearing from constituents at the moment?
Well, there's some upset, I suppose, that the initial plans where it was understood to
be an entirely development directed towards elderly and towards retirement, you know, people
in their 50s onwards, I suppose, one and two bedroom apartments, wait on site services
and supports and kind of a model of retirement village, that's what people anticipated, but
now this is kind of way from that, it's the planning has been amended to allow for residential
of any type, so that means it could be potentially be young families, it could still be elderly
as well, but I suppose it's to ensure that whatever the long-term option is here that that
appropriate assessment is made around how those houses are allocated and how the site
and services and facilities is managed afterwards.
Yeah, and that has to be said, there is a lot of this point to because the way from the
fears of anti-social behavior or for this coming into rack and ruin or for this being
unsightly or unhygienic or anything like that, there was elderly people, and I suppose
you could say if I wanted a better term, vulnerable members of the community, they thought,
but we'll have ideal housing in the centre of the town, and it looks like those dreams
are dashed. They are, they are dashed if this happens, but as
concertality knows, I had representations got from people that wanted to downsize and move
in from the country and they have made, they've come to me and asked me about these houses,
I went back to inquire, why aren't these being advertised, as I said, the planning went
in in 2019, changed again in 2025, some of those people were very anxious to move into
this time, and if it was to be for the elderly, but now with this question Mark Overs, I'd say,
if this, and I'm not trying to, to scope or anything about these social, we are only housing,
but not in this particular area, and I think people would not move into this if this, you know,
if this is going to be our social housing. Even if I'll come through shantalities, that
shane, if this could work, this is something that I understand you'd also be in favour of,
if we could get developments that are held up maybe in Spanish point or are on release to
Spanish point and facilitate a measure where we can pump that down to Guilty, whether it's
that's very capacity. Yeah, I mean in principle the likes of the Meadow Hotel is a huge and critical
employer in Whistler, massive and Spanish point built on the area, and the ongoing success of
the hotel is critical to economic survival in Whistler, so where are the owners have taken a
brave private investment decision to try and ensure the future viability hotel by creating a
storage connection between the hotel and Guilty, I think it's an opportune time that the water
services, Irish water and Clare County Council would be looking at this and see what other
possibilities does it open up for other residents and other businesses in the area to ensure
and enhance the future prospects for some place like Spanish point.
This broadcast package on Clare FM is funded by the local democracy reporting scheme.
Thanks to Daredon for bringing us that report.



