Tipperary council chairman plans special meeting to deal with lack of housing

The Chairman of Tipperary County Council Cllr Declan Burgess says he is going to call a special meeting of the local authority to discuss the provision throughout the county of affordable housing for people he called “the squeezed middle” who “must not be forgotten”.

Cllr Burgess made the announcement at the September meeting of the council in Clonmel, where Nenagh Independent councillor Seamus Morris suggested that a special meeting should be held to discuss all matters relating to lack of housing in Tipperary.

Cllr Morris said the council had planned a massive housing programme, but he added that there were no start or finish times outlined as to when construction would start and when the houses would be completed.

He said 67 houses were planned by the housing body Respond in Nenagh, but there was no sign yet of building getting underway.

obstacles

Cllr Morris said one of the main obstacles to building housing in the county was a lack of sewage infrastructure due to the failures of Irish Water.

Many people renting housing were receiving notices to quit from landlords and the council was unable to find alternative accommodation for such people, he said.The cost of buying a home was a major factor for many young couples.

Cllr Morris said he had been dealing with one such couple in the Nenagh area who had approval for a mortgage of €260,000 but they could not find a home to purchase.

Council CEO Sinead Carr said representatives of the Construction Industry Federation could be invited and updates of water and sewage provided at the special meeting.