Noonan’s Road and St Finbarr’s Road flats 'should be knocked and rebuilt', councillor says

THE chairperson of Cork City Council’s finance committee has called for the Noonan’s Road and St Finbarr’s Road social housing complexes to be flattened and rebuilt.

Shocking living conditions in local authority housing in the two neighbouring developments, which date back to the 1960s, have been highlighted in The Echo in recent weeks.

In both flat complexes, social housing tenants say they have been “abandoned” by Cork City Council, leaving them in dilapidated and dangerous homes which are prone to dampness and mould and which regularly suffer from infestation by rats and mice.

Fianna Fáil councillor Seán Martin has said he favours the demolition of both flat complexes, with residents moved to new accommodation and, once their former homes are rebuilt, given the option of moving back in.

“If you level the two blocks down there, Noonan’s Road and Finbarr’s Road, you have a big site there, including the big tarmacadam area there in the front. I think we could do a very good development there, a model one, that would fit the purpose and actually house more people going forward as well,” Mr Martin said.

Asked for a timeline on such a redevelopment, Mr Martin said he could see no reason the work could not be under way by this time next year.

“There’s two developments on Barrack Street and then Roche’s Cross, and there’s a few other availabilities in the area as well.

“If we’re going to decant people, then there’s no reason that we can’t start on one or two sites up there and show that we’re real about this, we mean what we’re saying, and let’s get this done,” he said.

“There are other developments around the place, if vacancies became available around the place, we should be offering them to people if they have an interest in moving out, if we are sincerely deciding that the road to go to is to knock them and bring in a new development,” Mr Martin added.

Mr Martin, who was co-opted onto Cork City Council in 1997, replacing his brother Micheál, who is currently Tánaiste, said he had put through a motion calling for an examination of options for the area, and he was hoping to get a reply from the executive in September.

“We’ll see what the report says in September. My understanding is council management will walk the site next week, a number of the key people down there, and they’re going to have the councillors meet onsite to have a look at what can be done.”

He said that he and fellow councillors were “blue in the face” from putting through motions attempting to improve the area around Noonan’s Road and St Finbarr’s Road.

“Look at the area, St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, UCC, it’s a beautiful area, but these are eyesores in that area. There’s no reason we can’t move, when you have the money, use it or lose it...and I think there’s a need to drive on now,” Mr Martin said.

“Personally, I think [the flats] should be knocked, that’s in my motion. I think you ask people what they want, what’s the best fix for them, we’ve done it in the north-west ward for decades now, and there’s no reason we can’t mirror it in Noonan’s Road and Finbarr’s Road, it’s a much smaller development than what we’ve done up in Knocknaheeny. This is the way to go,” he said.

A spokesperson for Cork City Council said its housing directorate had recently undertaken “a detailed survey and assessment of the housing units in the Noonan’s Road area, which includes Saint Finbarr’s Road, with a view to the progression of their refurbishment/upgrade (to include deep energy retrofit).

“The council is currently reviewing the survey findings in order to consider the next steps to the progression of sustainable and appropriate solutions to the housing development in the area,” the council spokesperson said.

“Residents and elected representatives will be advised of progress in this regard in due course.”