Little faith in Kildare housing scheme

TWO sites in the Athy Municipal District that were previously designated for the Serviced Site Scheme in Ballyshannon and Ballitore have been delayed.

The Serviced Sites Scheme is an initiative that allows serviced sites to be available in towns and villages at a discount to the market value, allowing individuals to build their own homes. While the scheme is good in theory, it has seen many issues in practice.

At last week’s Athy MD meeting, cllr Ivan Keatley brought this issue forward for discussion, calling the scheme “too restrictive”.

Additionally, he said: “Rural people aren’t qualifying for this scheme. As an MD, we should be driving it.” The much-anticipated scheme has not been received positively, with the rest of Athy MD questioning its viability.

“It’s pinching people who really need these districts so they can live where they’re from,” said cllr Veralouise Behan.

Agreeing, cathaoirleach Aoife Breslin said: “We have tied ourselves in knots with this scheme. It’s causing great hardships to people in these areas where there’s a great need for housing.” Cllr Keatley showed great interest in working with the Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) for Housing to work on moving along the progress of these sites. “Something needs to happen sooner rather than later. I look forward to working with the SPC and MD to get working on this scheme,” he said.

In response, the council gave updates on both sites.

The Ballyshannon site remains privately owned, meaning that the possibility of its development rests in the owners’ hands, while the Ballitore site is under council ownership yet has been delayed awaiting the recruitment of a technical resource to the affordable team to progress a feasibility study.

The council expressed doubts about securing funding for the Ballitore site, referencing the launch of a similar Serviced Sites Scheme in Clogherinkoe in 2024, which has seen poor uptake.