Over half of targeted derelict buildings now back in use

More than half of the vacant and derelict properties targeted by Westmeath County Council under a major regeneration initiative have now either been brought back into use or placed on the market, councillors have been told.

A report presented by director of finance Michael Hand at the quarterly finance meeting outlined progress under the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) Call 3 acquisition programme, which is focused on tackling long-term vacancy and dereliction in the centres of Mullingar and Athlone.

The report states that 40 properties were originally approved for inclusion in the programme.

Of those, 23 have been brought back into use or placed up for sale by their owners, while engagement has begun with the owners of a further 13 properties. The compulsory purchase process has been completed on one property, while another CPO process has commenced.

The council has also submitted a new list of 28 additional properties to the Department of Housing for approval. The expanded programme now includes town centre buildings and also suitable sites on approach roads into Mullingar and Athlone.

The report also notes that a property at Pearse Street/O'Connell Street in Athlone, acquired through a compulsory purchase order, has now been vested in the council and will be offered for sale on the open market.

Dereliction also featured prominently during the council meeting itself, as Cllr Aengus O'Rourke asked why the local authority had collected no derelict site levies during 2024 despite outstanding charges amounting to around €2.5 million. He said the figure represented almost 10% of the national total and should "ring alarm bells".

Cllr O'Rourke asked what further enforcement action would be taken against landowners who had failed to pay and suggested the council establish a dedicated internal taskforce with "a laser-sharp focus on dereliction".

Responding, council chief executive Barry Kehoe said Westmeath had consistently pursued derelict site levies, but stressed that the legislation had never been intended as a revenue-raising measure. "We've always had a policy and practice here of raising levies to try to make the most of what is, in my view, weak legislation," he said.

Mr Kehoe argued that the policy had nonetheless achieved results by encouraging owners to return properties to productive use. "It has worked to an extent in that it has encouraged people to bring sites back into use," he said.

He told councillors the outstanding debt is fully accounted for in the council's books and proposed that members receive a detailed presentation at Strategic Policy Committee level on the current legislation, forthcoming changes and the role of the Revenue Commissioners in administering the new derelict sites tax.

The update comes as the council continues to use regeneration funding alongside compulsory purchase powers to bring vacant and derelict properties back into use in Mullingar and Athlone, with further acquisitions expected as the latest tranche of applications is assessed.