A Clare developer is warning it would take 22 years to meet the current housing demand in the county unless the pace of delivery by the local authority is increased.
It comes as the government was €2bn behind its annual expenditure target for housing by the end of September.
Figures from the Department of Housing show that the government had only spent half of their allocated budget on home building by the end of September.
At the beginning of October, only €568m was spent on Local Authority and Approved Housing Body new builds and acquisitions.
This is approximately 37% of the €1.53 billion budgeted for the year.
In this county, over 60 housing units will be provided by Clare County Council this year between direct and indirect builds, bringing the total tally of new houses to 200 units.
Next year’s figures will see the local authority bring 56 units to the market.
Other bodies are due to bring 75 houses on stream, meaning 131 new homes will be available.
Larry Brennan of Ennis-based Woodhaven Developments says the onus is on the council to draw down the funding allocated from the government and that this hasn’t been done.
Larry, who’s also a member of the Council’s Housing Committee, says he, the chair and council officials must take responsibility for this.
The Chair of Clare’s Housing Committee is arguing that the local housing demand will never be met, no matter the speed at which houses are made available.
Shannon-based Independent Councillor Gerry Flynn, insists that Clare County Council is doing it’s best to deliver for the county with the resources its been given.
Councillor Flynn says the council is meeting the targets set out by the government and won’t ‘beat itself up’ over not outstripping demand.
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