{"id":381299,"date":"2026-04-04T07:51:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T07:51:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/381299\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T07:51:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T07:51:15","slug":"will-the-councils-new-approach-to-battling-dublins-dereliction-work-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/381299\/","title":{"rendered":"Will the council\u2019s new approach to battling Dublin\u2019s dereliction work? \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Almost two years after its purchase by Dublin City Council<\/a> number 30 North Frederick Street stands as a monument to urban dereliction.<\/p>\n

The Georgian house, just north of Parnell Square, was once the home of guest house and club An Stad, a popular meeting place for the Irish nationalist and cultural movements, with James Joyce<\/a>, Oliver St John Gogarty<\/a> and Michael Collins<\/a> recorded among its visitors. <\/p>\n

This provenance did nothing to protect it from decline and, after years of vacancy, in 2011 the house in Dublin\u2019s north city centre was placed on the Derelict Sites Register<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"3030 North Frederick Street Dublin. Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times
\n \"EntranceEntrance to 30 North Frederick Street Dublin.
\n\u00a0Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times <\/p>\n

In 2015, the house began to collapse and the council had to undertake emergency stabilisation work, wrapping it in steel bands and sealing the windows and doors with metal plates. <\/p>\n

Eventually, in mid-2023, the council applied to An Bord Plean\u00e1la for compulsory purchase orders to acquire the house. A year later, those orders were granted, but there has yet to be any evident alteration in the fortunes of this protected structure.<\/p>\n

Its prospects may, however, be set to change. In the battle against dereliction and vacancy, the council finally appears to be arming itself.<\/p>\n

In the coming months it will establish the Dublin City Development Corporation, a special-purpose vehicle (SPV) dedicated to city regeneration. <\/p>\n

Similar to Ballymun Regeneration Ltd or Limerick 2030, it will be a council-owned company, but with an independent board of directors that will be able to borrow and invest without affecting the council\u2019s or the State\u2019s balance sheet.<\/p>\n

\"CllrCllr Cian Farrell (left) chair of the Urban Redevelopment Working Group Dublin City Council and Karl Mitchell Executive Manager City Co-ordination Office outside no 30 North Frederick Street Dublin. Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times <\/p>\n

The new development company will have a five- to 10-year business plan and will take time to scale up, but in the meantime the council has selected two streets, Middle Abbey Street and North Frederick Street, for what it calls a \u201cbold urban rejuvenation pilot\u201d, which could potentially see the old An Stad guest house provide accommodation for the Rotunda Hospital and its staff.<\/p>\n

These streets will receive concentrated resources and attention, says Karl Mitchell, executive manager of the city co-ordination office. <\/p>\n

\u201cMiddle Abbey Street and North Frederick Street will be test beds. They will show us the opportunities and the challenges,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

These two streets have different characteristics but embody various aspects of city dereliction and vacancy. <\/p>\n

North Frederick Street, on a straight line to O\u2019Connell Street, is part of Dublin\u2019s north Georgian core. Some buildings are in active use, including a hotel, and some of the houses are clearly occupied at upper storeys, but several shops are shuttered and have been for years.<\/p>\n

Middle Abbey Street, runs west from O\u2019Connell Street along the Luas line. The most striking example of vacancy is on its northside where the former headquarters of the Irish Independent newspaper has been vacant for more than two decades. <\/p>\n

However, six months ago new owners, British developer Summix, secured permission for a student accommodation scheme of more than 300 beds. This side of the street also has a newly built hotel, and entrances to retailers Arnotts, Penneys and Eason. <\/p>\n

[\u00a0How are buildings designated as derelict?Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\"AA rendering of the proposed student housing at Independent House on Middle Abbey Street in Dublin <\/p>\n

The opposite side of the street is a different prospect, with several smaller buildings of the traditional living-above-the-shop model. Some appear entirely vacant. Others have active ground-floor business, but look underused in their upper storeys.<\/p>\n

This perception of underuse or vacancy may or may not be the reality, which is why the council has already started intelligence gathering. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe are really scraping public data,\u201d Mitchell says. <\/p>\n

The council is using its own planning files, title searches and Residential Tenancies Board and Central Statistics Office information to create a \u201cdigital twin\u201d that allows the council to \u201cgo in digitally\u201d and \u201clook at any building, its history, its current status\u201d, he says. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re layering all that up at the moment. I\u2019m sure it\u2019ll show us deficits in data, so the next step will be boots on the ground and making contact with property owners.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although the council is readying for battle, it is starting with diplomacy, through its invitingly titled \u201cconcierge service\u201d as Social Democrats councillor Cian Farrell, who chairs the Urban Redevelopment Working Group, explains.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Derelict Dublin: 10 empty southside buildings in a city with a housing crisisOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a carrot-and-stick approach. The carrot, this concierge service, will act as a partner to help you redevelop your building,\u201d says Farrell.<\/p>\n

This might involve planning advice, assisting with financial schemes and derogations, which, he says, is \u201cvery important\u201d for conservation.<\/p>\n

A \u201cproject management unit\u201d is being assembled to operate this service, Mitchell says. It will have planning, architectural and quantity surveying expertise.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey might see there\u2019s a problem on either street and identify a fix. The fix might be within our own gift as the local authority, or it might require national legislation,\u201d says Mitchell.<\/p>\n

\" Middle Abbey Street Dublin.Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times
\n \"FormerFormer Independent House building on Middle Abbey Street Dublin. Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the benefit of a test bed. It gives us the opportunity to use real live examples to say: this is where inner city living is quite complex, quite difficult and these are the changes we believe we need to make it viable for the owner.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, the city would not have a dereliction problem if there weren\u2019t recalcitrant owners who, regardless of the incentives available, won\u2019t bring their buildings back into use. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe carrot has to be balanced by the stick,\u201d Farrell says. \u201cWe will be looking at the mechanisms and tools we have as a council to force an engagement with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

This could include applying derelict sites levies, but also looking at overdue rates, fire inspections, planning inspections and waste management. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe will use every tool in our arsenal, in tandem with the carrots,\u201d says Farrell.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don\u2019t engage, or refuse to engage, we\u2019re going to do everything in our power to force that conversation, to bring that building back into use.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inaction, to date, is not necessarily malevolent in its intent, but Farrell and Mitchell stress once the concentrated resources of the council are available \u2013 services that in the private sector would be costly for owners \u2013 refusal to engage won\u2019t be tolerated. <\/p>\n

\u201cEvery single building has a story and some are more difficult than you think. We are aware that some people are nearly like accidental owners,\u201d says Mitchell.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have ended up with a property they are struggling with, maybe at one stage they used the retail element, but that retail is no longer viable. They are asset rich, but cash poor and we want to help those people.\u201d <\/p>\n

Some owners may be institutional investors or pensions funds, based overseas, and this effort is to start calling out: \u201cWhy are you not actively engaged with the council?\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeaving something vacant, we believe, is not good for the social fabric of the city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Every single building has a story and some are more difficult than you think<\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00a0Karl Mitchell<\/p>\n

The ultimate stick is compulsory acquisition, which has had a chequered history for the council. <\/p>\n

Although 30 North Frederick Street\u2019s prospects may be looking up, the council recently shelved refurbishment of two houses on Connaught Street in Phibsborough due to the excessive costs following their deterioration since they were acquired seven years ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past, we acquired properties where we didn\u2019t have a reuse or a disposal strategy. So we inadvertently ended up becoming the landlord of vacant and derelict properties across the city,\u201d Farrell says. <\/p>\n

He explains that when the council acquires a building, it will go through internal departments (housing or community) to assess whether they have a use for it. Then the council looks externally, to the State\u2019s Land Development Agency, then to an approved housing body, before it would be offered to the private market for conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom acquisition to disposal, there\u2019s now a loop in place, time gated for each stage, which was a missing piece in the past,\u201d says Farrell.<\/p>\n

Acquisition, Mitchell says, will remain a last resort. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe won\u2019t be buying everything, that\u2019s not our rationale here. What we\u2019re doing is encouraging and helping,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the wicked ones, if the State is the only option, we will consider that, but we won\u2019t be just taking for the sake of taking, because no one else is doing it. We will have an exit plan before we start, otherwise we won\u2019t take it. The ideal for us is the person who owns it brings it back to life, not us, to be brutally honest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NorthNorth Frederick Street Dublin.\u00a0Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times <\/p>\n

Mitchell acknowledges the council has to get its own house in order, bringing the vacant and derelict properties it already owns, such as 30 North Frederick Street, back into use.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no point in us tackling other people if we can\u2019t tackle our own issues. Some of these properties they\u2019re extremely challenging and very costly. If you spend the capital money, you can only do that with a guarantee of a long-term rent role,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The new project management unit will look to find those tenants, he says, suggesting that the North Frederick Street property might be of interest to nearby hospitals, the Rotunda or the Mater, or it could be redeveloped for an anchor tenant on a long-term lease.<\/p>\n

In some cases, selling buildings will be the most appropriate option, Mitchell says. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at any really good development models across the world \u2013 in London, New York, Copenhagen \u2013 money is accrued and recycled back into the next building and the next building. The whole idea is cyclical, so you\u2019re not always going chasing State money as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concept of a revolving fund is crucial to the success of the SPV that will take over from the project management unit to take the rejuvenation project from a pilot to a citywide programme.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Why are so many properties derelict in Dublin city centre during a housing crisis?Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

This marks a considerable change in approach by councillors, previously adamant all council property should be retained for social housing, Farrell acknowledges.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know we have a social housing shortage, but if we turn everything into social housing, there\u2019s no return. Then we have to go looking for more money, for another grant,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sustainability of this new SPV involves asking, can we turn some buildings into cost-rental, or part into retail, or affordable purchase? Should some or it be private? <\/p>\n

\" Middle Abbey Street Dublin.Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times
\n \" Middle Abbey Street Dublin. Photo: Bryan O\u2019Brien \/ The Irish Times <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the different mix we\u2019re looking at.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although the SPV would ultimately be self-sustaining, setting it up and starting the pilot will require cash. The council has committed \u20ac18 million from its own budget to staff the team and has secured an additional \u20ac10 million in urban regeneration and development fund grants from the Government, with an expectation that this will increase to \u20ac114 million in State funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithin the next two months, we\u2019ll have a dedicated team and a dedicated office, and we will hit the ground running,\u201d Mitchell says. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe SPV then is our attempt to be brave and very ambitious, to work with anyone that wants work with us, whether that\u2019s private investment, whether it\u2019s banking. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not doing business in the way we\u2019ve always done business.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Almost two years after its purchase by Dublin City Council number 30 North Frederick Street stands as a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":381300,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[28566,42,1634,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-381299","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-bob","9":"tag-headlines","10":"tag-media","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-top-news","13":"tag-top-stories","14":"tag-topnews","15":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381299"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381299\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/381300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}