Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 January 2024
69. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the number of derelict or vacant properties that have been brought back into use and notified to her Department, by county, since 2022, in tabular form. [4028/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Town Centre First Policy is a major cross-government policy that aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into our town centres. It supports the Our Rural Future vision for a thriving rural Ireland which is integral to our national economic, social, cultural and environmental wellbeing and development.
Central to the Town Centre First approach is the range of support funding in place, including my Department’s Rural Regeneration and Development Fund and the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, which both aim to prioritise addressing vacancy and dereliction throughout rural Ireland.
In 2022, in recognition of the urgent need to transform and regenerate town centres, I introduced under the Town and Village Renewal Scheme a new Building Acquisition Measure. The purpose of this measure was to support local authorities to immediately acquire derelict or vacant buildings with the intention of using these projects for town regeneration in line with the aims of the overarching Town and Village Renewal Scheme.
I am happy to confirm that 29 properties were purchased by local authorities under the 2022 Building Acquisition Measure utilising €6.1m, and 24 properties were purchased under the 2023 Measure utilising €4.6m.
The 2023 Town and Village Renewal Scheme which was launched last July with funding of €15 million is also designed to support the revitalisation of rural Ireland. The closing date for applications was 10th November 2023, and the assessment process has now commenced. I expect to announce successful projects by the end of Quarter 1 of 2024.
The fifth call of the Rural Regeneration Development Fund is also currently open for applications, with a closing date of 8 February. I would expect to again see issues of vacancy and dereliction featuring in the applications received.
As requested by the Deputy I have attached a table to this answer outlining the projects funded by my Department since 2022 which focus on the challenges of vacancy and dereliction.
