Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 169: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will reply to a matter (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14420/10]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is aware of the concerns of consumers of housing services in current market conditions, including in regard to unfinished or partially completed residential developments. The Department is progressing work with stakeholders, including the National Building Agency and local authority representatives, to develop a fuller picture of the scale of these difficulties in terms of mapping such developments on a county by county basis, setting out the range of statutory powers at the disposal of the relevant agencies and determining what further measures might need to be considered.

Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 170: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if he will reply to matter (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14421/10]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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The legislative provisions in relation to taking in charge of estates are contained in Section 180 of the Planning and Development Act 2000. Section 180 provides, in relation to estates which have been completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority in accordance with the permission, that the planning authority must, if requested to do so by the developer or by the majority of the qualified electors who are owners or occupiers of the houses involved, initiate the procedures in section 11 of the Roads Act 1993 for declaring the road(s) to be public roads, for whose maintenance the local authority will then be responsible. It is a matter for the elected members to decide whether or not to take in charge the roads in question.

In relation to estates which have not have been completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority and where enforcement proceedings have not been commenced within the relevant period, section 180 also provides that the planning authority must, if requested to do so by the majority of the residents as defined above (but not the developer), initiate the procedures in section 11 of the Roads Act. Section 180 also provides that, where a planning authority makes an order under section 11 of the Roads Act, it must also take in charge any open spaces, car parks, sewers, water mains or drains within the attendant grounds of the development.

In February 2008, my Department issued Circular Letter PD 1/08, promoting a comprehensive and pro-active approach to the taking in charge of residential estates. It required each planning authority to develop or update, as appropriate, and implement a policy on taking in charge in accordance with the policy guidance, the main principles of which are as follows:

Certain core facilities and infrastructure should always be taken in charge on request, including public roads and footpaths, unallocated surface parking areas, public lighting, public water supply, foul and storm water drainage and public open spaces;

The issue of taking in charge should be addressed at preplanning application stage, and in the planning application when the developer should be required clearly to identify the area to be taken in charge in due course;

Planning authorities should take all necessary measures to ensure proper completion of the development, in particular through securing adequate bonds, ongoing inspection of construction and taking enforcement action where necessary;

The procedures for taking in charge should begin promptly on foot of a request by the majority of the residents in the development or by the developer, as appropriate. Protocols, including time frames, must be set out by planning authorities to respond to requests for taking in charge; and.

In relation to older estates, priority must continue to be given to resolving those estates that have been left unfinished or not taken in charge for the longest period.

A new local government service indicator in relation to taking in charge was introduced in 2008 onwards. Planning authorities are required to provide the following information in respect of the previous year:

The number of residential estates for which the planning permission has expired in respect of which formal written requests for taking in charge (from residents or developers) were on hands at the beginning of the year;

The number of estates that were taken in charge in the year in question;

The total number of dwellings in these estates; and

The number of estates in respect of which requests were received that were not completed to the satisfaction of the planning authority in line with the planning permission.

In 2008, 316 estates were taken in charge. Further statistics on this issue are outlined in the 2008 Service Indicators Report which are available to view and download at www.lgmsb.ie.