Affordable housing in Mayo county town 'should act as a blueprint for future projects'

Castlebar town and surrounding areas has a serious lack of affordable housing.

That's according to Sinn Féin local election candidate Donna Hyland.

Ms. Hyland has welcomed the proposed Mayo County Council affordable housing project for the county town.

But she has warned that bureaucracy regarding local housing projects is escalating the housing crisis and delaying the delivery of much needed homes.

Donna Hyland said: “At a recent Mayo County Council housing committee meeting Tom Gilligan, Head of Services at Mayo County Council, gave a presentation to the committee which included a proposal for 15 affordable houses to be built in Castlebar.

“There has not been an affordable housing project delivered in Castlebar by the council in over a decade.

"This is shocking considering the population density of the county town and the surrounding areas. Therefore, I welcome any progress on the housing issue.”

Donna Hyland, a member of Mayo County Council’s Housing SPC, added: “The Housing Committee has worked diligently alongside Mayo County Council to get this project to approval stage.

"The local authority was required to prove a need for affordable housing and submit a business case to the Department of Housing before the project was approved.

"This level of bureaucracy frustrates the process and causes delays before the project even gets to construction stage.”

“I am disappointed that the affordable housing project will deliver only fifteen units in Castlebar, and I advocate for housing targets to be increased.

"There is a great need for affordable homes and if this project is successful, I am hopeful that the project plan will act as a blueprint to streamline affordable housing applications to the Department of Housing in the future.”

Ms. Hyland concluded: “The lack of affordable houses to buy and to rent is having an impact on the recruitment ability of local employers.

"The sooner we can deliver the homes the better and I will continue to work with Mayo County Council to ensure the delivery of more social and affordable homes.”