Land Development Agency to deliver homes from 2020
A new land agency will unlock state-owned sites for private development to facilitate the construction of thousands of affordable homes.
Acres of unused sites nationwide will be sold by the €1.25bn Land Development Agency (LDA), with the first homes potentially opening their doors in 2020.
The Government made the promises and said the commercial body would have real powers, could buy private lands and had already identified huge State land sites for development.
Initially, up to 10,000 homes are planned on sites such as Dundrum’s 35-acre Central Mental Hospital lands in Dublin and on the 14.5-acre St Kevin’s site in Shanakiel, Cork.
Agency CEO John Coleman, former finance officer with Nama, said from day one work can begin on delivering 3,000 homes on targetted sites. The first would be delivered in 2020, he said.
The Government is comparing the setting up of the LDA to the establishment of the ESB, IDA and even Aer Lingus.
Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy expects to bring names of the agency’s new board to Cabinet next week. But legislation to give the agency’s powers, including compulsory purchase orders, may not be passed until next year.
Under the plan, developers will have to agree to requirements such as ensuring the site has 30% affordable housing and 10% social housing.
This is the first time that such a requirement with state land has been put in place, this is the first time that such an agency with such a strategic focus on state land for the public good has been set up in Ireland,” said Mr Murphy.
“We are going to break the boom and bust cycle of housing that has so badly affected two generations of our people in recent history. To properly break that damaging cycle in housing, we have to alter our attitude and our approach to land.”
The agency will have the flexibility to develop sites itself or to develop larger projects in joint partnerships with developers. It will unlock sites, such as hospital lands, barracks or depots, for development.
Initially, the land agency will deliver 3,000 homes on eight sites identified across the country. Nonetheless, the Government believes it could deliver as many as 150,000 homes over the next 20 years.
Pressed about how much an affordable home would cost, Mr Murphy said the target was that properties could be bought for €320,000 in Dublin and €250,000 outside the capital.
It is expected that the new agency plans to designate 30 developments zones or sites in Dublin as well as another 10 in Cork.
Speaking on RTÉ, Sinn Fein’s Eoin Ó Broin said the plan was “more of Fine Gael’s private sector-lead housing strategy that is failing to meet social and affordable housing need now”.
Homeless charities, such as the Simon Community, questioned why almost two-thirds of new homes on the sites would be private.
