Council set to develop housing units at former Boland Mills site

Cork City Council are set to redevelop the former Boland Mills site on the Old Mallow Road.

Part 8 details have gone on public display for the development which will consist of 57 housing units, both houses and apartments on an approximately 1.68 hectare site.

Of those, 12 will be two-bedroom two-storey terraced houses and 25 will be three-bedroom two-storey terraced houses.

There are also four one-bedroom apartments and 16 two-bedroom apartments proposed as part of three-storey duplex units included in the proposal.

A project agreement has been made with Ceiling & Allied Services Limited and the developer Murnane & O’Shea Limited to carry out the work.

A 1.8 metre high wall will feature on the north-west and south-east portions of the development. This will be through a mix of the retention of the existing boundaries and supplementation where it’s necessary.

Along the boundary with the Old Mallow Road itself, which will provide access to the development, a 1.1 metre high rendered wall with a railing above is proposed to create a boundary.

On the north-east side the housing will be set back an adequate distance from the embankment that runs along that boundary.

According to information received by Councillors on the proposed development, executives say there is a “substantial shortfall in the available stock of social housing to match need in the Blackpool area of the city”.

Local Sinn Féin Councillor Mick Nugent said while the development is certainly welcome, some infrastructural improvements in the general area need to happen.

“One thing I asked them to take on board there was just in terms of the infrastructure in the area. That area there have been ongoing issues around water services.

“I think any housing development in that general area will just have to make sure the infrastructure is up to standard,” he said.

He went on to highlight the numerous Part 8s that are currently out for public consultation on the northside.

“Between Blackpool, the Commons Road, the Old Mallow Road, there are nearly half a dozen at this stage all in the planning process. It’s definitely welcome."

Submissions and observations on this particular development can be made to Cork City Council by Wednesday, September 16 at 4pm.