Bandon housing scheme for elderly is back on track

Six new homes for older people in the West Cork town of Bandon are expected to become available in early 2027 after a troubled construction project was put back on track.

The St Michael’s development is due to reach substantial completion by the end of this year, with the homes expected to be ready for allocation during the first quarter of next year.

The timeline was confirmed at a recent meeting of Cork County Council’s Western Divisional Committee.

Independent Ireland councillor John Collins welcomed the progress and asked when people waiting for the homes could expect to move in.

“I’m delighted to hear that hopefully it will be available at the end of this year,” he said.

Cork County Council’s director of Housing, Keith Jones, said the current target was for substantial completion before the end of 2026. He said some additional time would be needed to complete snagging and formally hand over the development.

“We would expect those tenancies to be available for allocation early in 2027, probably in the first quarter,” Mr Jones said.

The project suffered a major setback when the original contractor went out of business.

Mr Jones said considerable work had since been done by the local voluntary group and the council’s housing team, in order to get construction restarted.

“Huge work has been done by St Michael’s, by Bandon Geriatrics, and my own team working with them to get this through and get it back on site as quickly as possible,” he said.

Councillors said the development would help provide accommodation for older people living alone, who are particularly difficult to house.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.