Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú) | Oireachtas source

Mayo has a huge issue with dereliction and vacancy. Mayo has the highest level of dereliction in the country at 14%. Its vacancy rate is 12%, the second highest in the country.

I want to raise the issue of dereliction, particularly around the protected structures and listed buildings. Consider the old Bank Corner on James Street in Claremorris, for example. The owners tried to redevelop this corner. Could I have the Minister's attention? Unfortunately, the developer tried to redevelop this area but the fact the building was listed effectively made the proposition for the project economically unviable. The irony is that we are going to preserve these buildings until they fall apart. It is critically important in town centres where we have protected buildings that the local authorities work with the developers. We need more subsidiarity in relation to this. It is totally wrong that the Office of the Planning Regulator in Dublin can dictate what is happening in Claremorris. Local politicians and local TDs know what is best for the town. This area of the town has been blighted with dereliction. It is a corner and a building that needs to be redeveloped and yet the protected status is actually making this development economically unviable. It is like trying to drive with the handbrake on. We need to ensure that this development can get off the ground. The town needs it. We need more accommodation in the town.

This comes at a time when this Government, and the last Government, de-zoned a significant amount of land around the town. Now we are making it more difficult to develop the town centre as well. If this issue is not rectified, this building will fall into further decay and crumble. Will the Minister intervene in relation to this? We need more subsidiarity. We need to work with the local councillors, politicians, planners, and the developer to make sure this building is viable and that we can rehouse more people in the centre of the town.

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