Meeting between Páirc na Coille residents and politicians ‘a good stepping stone’

THE chairman of a group representing Westport households afflicted by pyrite has described a recent meeting between politicians, council officials and locals as ‘a good stepping stone’.

Pádraic Marrey, Chairman of the Páirc na Coille Residents Association, was among those a meeting between Mayo County Council officials, local county councillors and TDs Michael Ring, Alan Dillon and Rose Conway-Walsh, to discuss the issue of pyrite in Páirc na Coille.

The meeting, which took place on Friday, heard presentations from the residents regarding what Mr Marrey called ‘complexities and anomalies’ in the estate.

The council is to correspond with the Department of Housing regarding a proposal to allocate modular housing to residents who need to rebuild their homes.

A proposal has also been made to house some residents in the 50-unit Golf Course Road estate – which is currently undergoing construction – on a temporary basis.

At least 32 houses in Páirc na Coille have submitted applications to the Defective Concrete Block Scheme, which entitles households with pyrite to a maximum of €420,000 in compensation based on a sliding scale.

However, homeowners in Páirc na Coille have said that their rebuild costs will exceed the amount they will receive under the scheme.

Residents have sought legal advice regarding various aspects of their houses, which were purchased from Mayo County Council as part of an affordable housing scheme.

Fifty-four houses were delivered at the estate in the early 2000s, through a partnership with Mayo County Council and Respond housing agency on council-owned land.

Mayo County Council have insisted that the estate is a private development.

“Nothing has been achieved or promised at this stage, but hopefully, it was a good stepping stone to further negotiations. It will be a work in progress for a while, but at least they all have a better understanding now of our  difficulties,” Mr Marrey told The Mayo News.

Modular housing

MAYO TD Alan Dillon has publicly called for residents in the estate to be given modular housing.

The only such modular housing development in Mayo is a 28-unit estate in Claremorris which is housing Ukrainian refugees.

A total of €94 million has been allocated to local authorities across the country for the purpose of constructing social homes using modern methods of construction, including rapid-build modular housing.

Addressing An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Dáil Éireann, Deputy Dillon said: “I certainly feel this is a political decision that should be embraced rather than a decision for civil servants to make.”

Taoiseach Varadkar said the Government would examine proposals made by Mayo County Council.

“Our experience with rapid-build solutions, however, is that they are never as rapid as people may believe they are. They are not much cheaper and while they may be more rapid than regular construction, they are not as rapid as people hope they might be,” said Taoiseach Varadkar.

“Often, that is not about the building itself but the site because you cannot just drop a house or apartment building onto a site. It must be properly serviced and all of those things. That is often the main cause for the delay, rather than the structure itself. We will consider any proposals that are made.”