By Sean Ryan - 06 August, 2017
Pic Minister for Housing Eoghan Murphy TD with Respond! CEO Declan Dunne. (Pic courtesy of Respond! website)
The Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Eoghan Murphy TD recently joined with local representative Deputy Martin Heydon and Respond Housing to announce the development of 59 new social homes in Athy, Co. Kildare.
The Respond housing charity, which was founded by the Franciscan Order and Fr Pat Cogan OFM in Waterford in the early 1980s, is planning a new 35-unit development alongside one of its existing estates in Athy.
Flinter´s Field will have 12 x 2-bed, 18 x 3-bed and 5 x 4-bed family homes for those on the social housing list in Kildare. The existing Flinter’s Place estate has 44 family homes and the new adjoining estate will expand the community, as the residents in Flinter´s Field will be able to avail of the services in the existing active community building.
Part VIII planning was recently granted by Kildare County Council, which is providing the site to Respond Housing, so the charity can now commence preparation of the tender documentation for construction. It is planned that families will be in their new homes in Quarter 2 of 2019.
Also in Athy, Respond is planning to finish the Gallow Hill estate of 24 new social homes, with 16 x 3-bed and 8 x 4-bed homes to be built on the site. Respond is finalising arrangements to bring this development on stream. It is intended that construction will commence in Gallow Hill in September of this year with the completion date set in Quarter 3 of 2018.
Minister Murphy said: “This development is an example of how we can unlock the potential of state-owned land. Fifty-nine new families will move into new homes across both sites and I welcome the work of Respond and Kildare County Council.”
Declan Dunne, CEO of Respond Housing said: “We are delighted to progress these projects which will see 59 families in permanent homes of their own in the second half of 2019. Respond is significantly ramping up our pipeline of social housing projects in order to help deliver the scale of housing that Ireland so dearly needs. We are grateful to Kildare County Council for their support on these projects and in particular for the land to develop Flinter´s Field. We will continue to vigorously pursue and identify sites and suitable projects for social housing in order to help alleviate Ireland’s current housing and homelessness crisis.”
These developments will bring Respond’s housing in Co. Kildare to 221 homes when completed.
