Cork City Council considers buying Keatings site for housing

Cork City Council is working on buying the long-vacant former Keatings Fitted Furniture buildings on Ballyhooly Rd to deliver housing there.

At the most recent local area committee meeting for the north-east ward, Independent Ireland councillor Noel O’Flynn asked the council to consider purchasing the site. 

“The site would be ideal for an infill housing scheme for older people who want to downsize to a smaller property and give up three- and four-bedroom houses for families who require them," he said. 

“This would be an ideal location for such a development, which would be supported by the new pedestrian crossings at Gordon’s Hill, Ballyhooly Rd, giving safe access, etc, and is close by to shopping and other amenities.”

A traffic signal-controlled crossing is to be introduced on Ballyhooly Rd immediately north-east of the junction with Gordon’s Hill. The corners on both sides of the Gordon’s Hill junction will be tightened in order to reduce the speed of turning vehicles, and the uncontrolled pedestrian crossing will be relocated to the south, to reduce the distance that pedestrians are required to travel to cross the road.

Feasibility report

The council’s acting director of housing, Nicky Carroll, told Mr O’Flynn: “The Housing Directorate are currently progressing with a feasibility report for the delivery of housing at this location, as part of the consideration to purchase.”

The issue has been raised previously by Labour’s John Maher, who in February last year asked the council to submit a compulsory purchase order on the site to take ownership of it, then to develop it as a shared space for business, or the community, and for residential activities.

Niall Ó Donnabháin, the council’s director of planning and integrated development, said at the time: “Cork City Council Property Department has engaged with the selling agent in respect of the above-referenced property regarding its potential acquisition.

“As part of that process, consideration is being given to potential use for the entirety of the lands on which the property is constructed. That process will dictate both the extent of interest of Cork City Council to acquire, and continued engagement with the selling agent and vendor.”

Mr Maher told The Echo that in order to get funding to purchase and redevelop the site, it had to be used just for housing, rather than be a shared space.

Gated community

“I believe they’re looking at a step-down, gated community for older people. Ideally, it would be a space with retail and community facilities as well as housing but, at this stage, we need to just build the housing. It’s been vacant for so long.”

He added that the site would be well supported with the new pedestrian crossing, a new bus stop under BusConnects, and situated near the entrance to Glen River Park.