Resident neighbours raise concerns over potential anti-social behaviour and household prices
A new housing development project in north Dublin raised boycott from the local city inhabitants, which expressed their concerns over the potential rise of anti-social behaviour of future establishment residents.
The project is currently developed under the supervision of the housing association Túath, that also owns 68 properties at Thornwood and a residential area in Beaumont.
Túath’s plan for Dublin is to allocate 46 houses and 22 apartments to social households by the end of this spring. The investment was approved by Department of the Environment and supported by a Housing Finance Agency loan.
As Grandbrind Ltd developer could not sell the properties, the buildings were allocated to social housing. Dublin inhabitants complain that the decision was taken “without local consultation”.
“We welcome integrated social housing. The issue is the way this was lobbed into the community, out of the blue, without consultation”, Des Maguire, chairman of Beaumont Residents Association, declared.
Resident Michelle Muller from Collinswood also explained why locals do not approve the project.
“It is well known that a high concentration of social housing is associated with anti-social behaviour. People around here are all working, out all day. There will be a high rate of unemployment among these people. They’ll be around all day,” she commented.
The impact of the estate on property prices was also taken into consideration by locals in Dublin.
Meanwhile, according to the Dublin City Council official statement, Túath’s proposal has been “carefully considered and approved” and locals have been “ill-informed and discriminatory” on this matter.
The official spokesman of the Council reassured the locals that the tenants will be rigorously selected and further concluded:
“Túath provides homes for ordinary people, mostly decent working-class people, some of who may have had mortgages before or have been unfortunate and lost their homes due to unemployment or massive rent hikes. Túath will be working hard to ensure that Thornwood is a safe, secure and popular place where families choose to settle down and where being a good neighbour is key.”
