COUNTY Limerick councillors have called on the acting government to take urgent action to address the housing crisis, which they described as being of “biblical proportions”.
Solving the problem of homelessness was a pressing issue for councillors at this Monday’s Adare-Rathkeale municipal district meeting.
Fianna Fail councillor and former Limerick mayor Kevin Sheahan believes that credit unions should have the option of acquiring business society licenses as it would help alleviate the housing crisis.
“The rules are too strict. Credit unions are owned by members and should be allowed to give their customers a mortgage.
“It will be modest houses from here on in. The economy will be ill for a time to come. This is a problem we thought they only talked about in Third World countries, not in this country. Someone took their eye off the ball,” he declared.
Independent councillor Richard O’Donoghue called for the council to carry out an audit of its properties in the district to identify units that can be used to alleviate the problem.
He said there were hundreds of vacant properties available to the council throughout the county. There were people with social housing units not living in them and he called for the local authority to seek utility bills from occupiers when investigating this.
Describing the crisis like “something out of the 1930s”, Independent councillor Emmett O’Brien said it was “criminal” that there were empty houses on main streets across the county when people have to sleep homeless. He suggested that tax incentives be introduced to entice property owners to renovate vacant houses.
Fine Gael councillor Stephen Keary maintained that many county towns were falling into dereliction and schemes to help solve this problem were not forthcoming.
“Incoming ministers need to propose incentives,” he suggested.
Cllr Adam Teskey (FG), who was attending his first Adare-Rathkeale meeting after his recent co-option, agreed that tax incentives were needed to entice property owners to renovate unused housing units. He also called on the local authority to reassess the incomes of people living in social housing.
“I have met people in social housing with better jobs than myself,” the 26-year-old car salesman claimed.
District director Caroline Curley responded: “Once you get a council house, you have a house for life. The rent is revised depending on your income. We do not penalise you for improving yourself.”
“They are earning more than I am. How long has that policy been in place? Cllr Teskey asked.
“Since Moses was a boy scout,” Cllr Sheahan answered.
by Alan Jacques
