Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 14 November 2018
90. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the work of the Land Development Agency and the use of public land for housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47160/18]
View answerAlong with my colleague the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, I signed the Establishment Order for the new Land Development Agency (LDA) on 13 September 2018. The Agency will act as a national centre of expertise, working with and supporting local authorities, public bodies and other interests, to harness public lands as catalysts to stimulate regeneration and wider investment and to achieve compact, sustainable growth, with a particular emphasis on complex regeneration projects and the provision of affordable housing.
To enable more delivery of social and affordable homes on public lands, the Government has, in parallel with the establishment of the LDA, approved a new affordability requirement in relation to publicly-owned lands, whereby a minimum of 30% of any housing developed must be reserved for affordable purposes in addition to the 10% statutory social housing requirement under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, whether such development is being progressed by the LDA or any other market operator. Furthermore, public bodies, such as local authorities and the Housing Agency, engaging with the LDA in relation to their lands will also be in a position to condition the release of such lands for development to reflect their own policy requirements. Therefore, complying with the Government's new public lands affordability requirement above, the LDA will be capable of progressing a significant level of affordable housing, both for purchase and for rent, on lands forming part of its portfolio of sites, working within the broader policy framework for the delivery of affordable housing set by the Government.
Significant preparatory work is required in relation to the initial portfolio of eight sites and as part of this process, funding structures will be devised on a case by case basis, taking account of the scale of each project, value for money for the State, risk and pace of delivery.
The LDA is in the process of commencing feasibility, planning and other preparatory works on its sites, with construction envisaged to commence on the first homes in 2019 for delivery in 2020, with progress ramping up in line with an overall business plan which is also being advanced as a matter of urgency.
