Ms Catherine Keenan:

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council welcomes the opportunity to make a submission to the Joint Committee on Planning, Housing and Local Government. I am the director of housing and joined by my colleague, Ms Mary Henchy, director of planning. I will focus on the main points, rather than read through my prepared script. The submission was compiled to have regard to the broader topic of appropriate use of public land, with specific emphasis on the Woodbrook/Shanganagh lands, as circulated with the invitation to attend the meeting. The regional planning guidelines for the greater Dublin area for the period 2010 to 2022 forecast a population of approximately 240,000 in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown by 2022. This equates to the provision of circa1,500 homes per annum over a period of six years.

The quarter 2, 2018 Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown housing task force returns for sites with greater than ten homes show that there are 41 active sites that account for circa1,300 homes under construction and that in the first eight months of the year planning permission was granted for 3,790 homes, more than treble the figure for 2017. The primary challenge for Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is providing the infrastructure required to open up the new growth areas of Kilternan, Glenamuck, Woodbrook, Shanganagh, Cherrywood, Stepaside and Sandyford. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has already maximised the use of the bulk of its viable serviced lands, in particular, for smaller in-field developments of two to 50 homes, in conjunction with the downsizing campaign. Since 2015 a total of 120 social homes have been completed, with a further four sites, comprising 129 homes. The council is at tender stage with a further 19 homes and feasibility stage with 729 homes, including the site at Shanganagh Castle. It is also working in partnership with three approved housing bodies to develop a further 208 homes.

Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown saw the fastest surge in prices in the capital in July, with prices up by 9.8%. By contrast, south Dublin saw an increase of just 5.2%. The median price for Dublin as a whole was €360,000 in July, while in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, it was €527,000, compared with €320,000 in both Fingal and south Dublin. The affordability problem is, therefore, unique to Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown. It is extremely important that Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council seek to maximise affordability on its own lands. The council is commencing development of its larger sites, including at Shanganagh Castle. The sites are mainly located in the southern part of the county. Larger sites will naturally take longer to build on. When we move into larger sites, there are economic, financial, planning and environmental considerations which add to the complexity of delivery.

In line with the EIA directive, certain developments, including on the Shanganagh Castle site, must be assessed for likely environmental effects before planning permission can be granted. Planning applications under Part 10 go directly to An Bord Pleanála. This applies to the Shanganagh Castle site as it is proposed to build more than 500 dwellings. Tenders for the master plan to prepare the scheme for compliance with the EIA directive, in preparation for Part 10 planning permission, were sought in quarter 1 of 2018. The integrated design team has commenced its work and preparations for this stage are expected to take at least nine months.

The public spending code was introduced in 2013 and provides for best value for money for public funds. It introduced a set of rules and procedures for projects with a value of more than €20 million. Under this code, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is obliged to carry out a cost-benefit, cost-effectiveness analysis. It must consider the option of a PPP and is obliged to engage with the National Development Finance Agency to examine finance and apportionment of the risk and balance sheet considerations. Projects are reviewed by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government and also peer reviewed by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

Assuming an average build of €250,000, the public spending code applies on sites of over 80 homes. The public spending code applies to Shanganagh, which has an estimated cost of €132 million. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is working with the National Development Finance Agency to develop funding options for Shanganagh. At the same time, in order to expedite matters, we have appointed a design team to progress the master plan in preparation for Part 10 planning.

In conclusion, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is actively managing its landbank and is now moving into larger sites which have more complexities in terms of delivery. As outlined in the submission, the public spending code provides important procedures for ensuring best value for money. However, it may be helpful if the threshold were increased to allow for quicker build on sites of more than 80 homes. Downsizing incentives would also assist in making better use of our housing stock for larger families on the waiting list.