The aim of the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) is to relieve critical infrastructural blockages in order to enable the accelerated delivery of housing on key development sites in urban areas with high demand for housing.
On 28 March 2017, Minister Coveney announced funding of €226.5 million for 34 projects under the LIHAF to build essential public infrastructure, including roads and bridges. These public infrastructure projects will be key to the early delivery of 23,000 housing units over the next four years. There is further potential for approximately 46,000 additional homes on these 34 sites in the longer term, bringing the projected yield up to 69,000 homes once sites are fully built out.
LIHAF will facilitate additional social housing of 2,300 housing units in the short term through the 10% Part V social housing dividend, with a further potential of 4,600 housing units in the longer term. Furthermore, a number of the projects, such as those which include lands in local authority ownership, will deliver more than the mandatory levels of social housing under Part V. For example, in relation to the 36 hectare site at Kilcarbery which is owned by South Dublin County Council and where LIHAF funding will support essential public roads and a pumping station, the tenure mix is anticipated to be 30% social and affordable housing and 70% private housing.
In addition to the accelerated and increased supply of housing generally and increased levels of social and affordable housing in some cases, the Government is also seeking an increased affordability dividend for the eventual purchaser of private housing. As part of the application process, local authorities were asked to secure commitments from developers in this regard, for example, through identifying the consequent price reduction, arising from the State-funded enabling infrastructure, for the house purchaser, or through selling a proportion of the homes at below market rates. The specific approach in individual cases will vary according to the scale and ownership status of each site.
Local authorities that have secured LIHAF funding for selected sites are currently engaging with relevant landowners and housing developers to conclude specific agreements in relation to finalising timelines for delivery of the housing units and the required affordability commitments. I expect that final agreements will be in place by the end of June to facilitate the signing of formal grant agreements with each Local Authority in respect of LIHAF funding. This will pave the way for work to proceed on procuring the infrastructure involved and, crucially, advancing the delivery of the badly needed associated housing.
