‘Arses need kicking’ over poor living conditions at Noonan's and Finbarr's Road, says Cork City Council chief executive

The chief executive of Cork City Council has apologised to residents of the 60-year-old Noonan’s Road and St Finbarr’s Road local authority housing developments, and said she was “shocked” at the living conditions there.

Ann Doherty, who has been chief executive since 2014, was speaking during a two-hour walkabout of social housing in which appalling conditions have been highlighted by The Echo over the past three weeks.

Residents have complained that they felt “abandoned” by the city council, saying they are living in dilapidated homes which are prone to dampness and mould and which are regularly infested by rats and mice.

Tenants have claimed that the city council has “forgotten” them, and has failed repeatedly to respond to requests to make repairs to their local authority housing, while some local councillors have expressed frustration that representations they have made over years have not resulted in action being taken.

Ms Doherty said she was “shocked” by what she had seen and she said she would have to reflect on how the situation had come about.

“It hasn’t happened in the last year, or five years, or 10 years, it’s many, many years in the making and I can’t answer you, ‘Why’,” she said.

Ms Doherty described her visit as “sobering”, saying that her sense was the Noonan’s Road flats were past the point of renovation and needed to be knocked and rebuilt.

She added that she would be talking to central Government about funding that redevelopment.

When it was put to Ms Doherty that some councillors have suggested that Noonan’s Road and St Finbarr’s Road may be the tip of the iceberg and there may be many other council tenants living in worse conditions across the city, she accepted this might be so.

“There may be, and look, we’ll just have to deal with it,” she said.

“We’ve done amazing work in relation to our social housing provision, we’re building brilliant new stock, and that’s fantastic and people are getting amazing new homes, but then when you see this, you think, my gosh, how do you balance the two?

“We haven’t held ourselves in good light with this community, have we?”

Speaking later to a group of council tenants from the two neighbouring developments, Ms Doherty said she had not been aware of the conditions in the flats.

“All I can do is say is I’m really sorry that you’ve been let down over the years,” she said.

“I don’t believe that anybody did it intentionally, but we are where we are, excuse that awful term, and I think what we need to do now is [decode] how do we go forward.”

Ms Doherty added that she intended to return to City Hall and address outstanding issues.

“With your permission, I’d like to go back with Brian (Geaney, assistant chief executive) and sit down with the housing maintenance team.

“I mean some of you have told me things and showed me things that a couple of arses need kicking, to be honest, because it’s not acceptable, and that will be dealt with,” she said.

There was a moment of some drama during the walkabout when, crossing 98 Street, Ms Doherty’s attention was drawn to two dead rats on the road, something residents said was a symptom of the high levels of rat infestation in the area.

Ms Doherty and Mr Geaney both dismissed questions about the timing of a large-scale clean-up of the Noonan’s Road area undertaken on the Friday before their visit, with Ms Doherty describing it as “a coincidence rather than a conspiracy”.

Speaking with residents after the walkabout, Mr Geaney and Ms Doherty promised to return in the autumn to inspect progress on improved maintenance and to appraise residents of redevelopment plans for the area.

Residents told The Echo afterward that they were cautiously optimistic after meeting the members of the executive, but they intended to keep the pressure on to ensure they were not forgotten again.

Ms Doherty and Mr Geaney were accompanied by the city architect, Tony Duggan, and by Cork South Central ward councillors Dan Boyle, Paudie Dinneen, Mick Finn, Fiona Kerins, Seán Martin, and Shane O’Callaghan, as well as Cllrs Collette Finn, Thomas Moloney, Mick Nugent and Terry Shannon.