RESIDENTS of the Evanwood estate on the fashionable Golf Links Road, Castletroy, who bought their ‘dream’ homes two years ago, are furious that they are now left looking onto a rubble filled building site and facing an uncertain future.
There are over 20 unfinished or unsold properties on the estate, built by developer, Ger Clohessy.
One young couple said: “You tell people how bad it is but I don’t think they really believe you until they come in here.
“We were sold a house and we don’t even have a green for our children”.
The estate has two cul-de-sacs, the first is completed and the second, dotted with unsold properties, has no road surface.
Another said: “I paid €370,000 for my house because it’s along the Golf Links Road, and now nobody would buy it”.
There is an air of uncertainty as to the outcome.
Receiver Graham Cullen, appointed by Irish Nationwide Building Society, told the Limerick Post: “Our aim is finish the work and sell the unsold units”.
It was reported earlier this year that Mr Clohessy was unhappy with the banks decision to appoint a receiver, having formed the opinion the market was showing signs of recovery.
One resident claimed he was told when he moved in three years ago that the road would be surfaced within a few weeks.
The result is that tyres are getting punctured and damaged by the rough terrain.
“When it’s dry the dust rises and makes it impossible to keep your home and your car clean, and when it rains, it turns to mud, causing the same problem”.
There is also a safety concern that the many shell buildings pose a threat to children.
Frustrated homeowners said that they suspected there were problems on the horizon before they moved in.
Said one: “I knew something was wrong when the numbers of builders on the site dropped everyday”.
Some complained that technical and structural issues had surfaced and remained unsolved.
Another homeowner said it was hard enough to accept living with negative equity.
“The question is, how long will I have to wait for the road outside of my house to be finished”.
When asked if Mr Clohessy visited the estate, he replied: “Sometimes you see him or someone in his family coming in to cut the grass or fill potholes”.
Pointing to the shell of an expansive house under construction, he told the Post that it was understood that Mr Clohessy was in the process of building it for his own use.
A few expressed anger at the way they have been treated by Clohessy Developments; however, others were reluctant to blame him, citing that he was a victim of the recession, and buyers were just unfortunate that they were crushed in the middle.
