Council to vote on sale of two derelict Barrack St properties

CORK city councillors will next week vote on a proposal to sell two derelict properties acquired by the local authority using compulsory purchase order (CPO) powers last year.

The full details of the proposed property disposal of 118 and 119 Barrack Street, including sale price and the potential purchaser details, will be discussed at Cork City Council meeting on Monday.

The properties, were both placed on the city’s derelict sites register in 2015, and CPO’d by the council along with four prominent derelict buildings on North Main Street in 2021.

Appeals had been lodged with An Bord Pleanála (ABP) after Cork City Council formally triggered the legal process to acquire the adjoining Barrack Street units, but ABP ultimately ruled that the acquisition of the sites by the local authority was necessary in order to render the sites non-derelict and prevent them from continuing to be derelict sites.

In its order, ABP described the condition of the sites as “neglected, unsightly and objectionable”, detracting to “a material degree” from the the community’s character and appearance.

“The situation is that the properties were acquired as derelict sites under compulsory purchase,” Green Party councillor Dan Boyle told The Echo. 

“They were appealed by the previous owner to An Bord Pleanála but the appeal was not accepted.”

Mr Boyle said he will be supporting the proposed property disposal at the council meeting.

“I’ve campaigned long and hard on these particular properties and similar properties on North Main Street. I’m glad to see progress is being made. 

"It has taken a while to get even this far but it’s a sign of intent that the council is becoming stronger in dealing with dereliction in the city and that’s only to be welcomed,” he said.

While it is not yet clear what might be developed at the location if the properties are disposed of, the site is zoned ‘ZO 06 - City Centre’ with an objective to “consolidate and facilitate the development of the central area and to promote its role as a dynamic mixed used centre for community, economic, civic, cultural and residential growth”.

Mr Boyle, said if the property disposal is voted through, redevelopment could take place in the near future.

“There are clauses in relation to these types of disposals whereby the people who are buying the property from the city council give a guarantee that they will be developed within a set time period,” he explained.