There are mounting calls for Clare County Council’s Tenancy Enforcement Officers to improve engagement with people impacted by anti-social behaviour.
It follows concerns raised by residents in an area of Ennis, who say they have been dealing with ‘neighbours from hell’ for a number of years.
A local community based in the Ennis Municipal District held a roundtable discussion with elected representatives last night to air concerns, which they say have been ongoing for seven years.
Significant physical and verbal abuse was alleged, along with excessive noise late at night and early in the morning.
It’s also alleged the tenants of the Council house concerned have engaged in serious littering, along with smashing windows and defacing cars in the area.
The residents say they are ‘prisoners in their own homes’, with one recalling their embarrassment at having visitors over during daylight hours.
Others say they cannot allow their children to play outside, and say many are developing stress-related mental health issues as a result.
The local authority has admitted that while contact has been received from residents concerned, its Tenancy Enforcement Officers – three of whom are employed to stamp out anti-social behaviour – can’t ‘substantiate’ the claims.
Mayor of the Ennis Municipal District, Fianna Fail Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy, says any system needs to make communities feel safe.
Councillors are set to arrange a further meeting between themselves, the local authority, Gardai and impacted residents to discuss the issues raised.
Among the items on the agenda at that gathering will be the ongoing engagement between members of the local community and the Council’s Tenancy Enforcement Officers.
Fine Gael Councillor Mary Howard says their approach may need to be thought out again on account of the issues raised in this Ennis community.
Councillors are set to table a motion at a full meeting of Clare County Council in the near future to call on the local authority’s Housing Department to urgently address all aspects of anti-social behaviour in Council tenancies across the county.
