Housing to be prioritised as Cork County Council plans €1.4bn spend
Cork County And €650m More Cost In Low Three Social, Includes Than Affordable, Year Homes Plan Council's Rental Investing
Cork County Council is planning a near €1.4bn investment in infrastructure development in the next three years, with the bulk of the money being spent on new housing projects and improvements to roads and transportation.
The council’s capital programme for 2025 to 2027 has earmarked a spend of €656.6m during that period on social, affordable, and low-cost rental homes across the county.
Next year, it is estimated that €197.4m will be spent on these projects, rising to nearly €250m in 2026, and almost €210m in 2027.
Chief executive Moira Murrell said that some of the money is being set aside for the council to purchase more landbanks for housing as it is currently running short of them.
Improvements to roads and transportation over the three years are being estimated by the local authority to cost just over €585m. Next year it has set aside €194.5m for them, €215m in 2026, and €175.7m in 2027.
Ms Murrell gave a breakdown of the housing schemes planned.
She said the largest amount, €262.7m, will be spent on constructing social housing, with a further €186m on affordable homes.
The council will spend the remainder of its planned budget on contributions to voluntary housing association schemes and on buying homes from developers and individual private owners.
The next biggest spending planned is on investing in amenity, recreation, arts, and cultural improvements at a total cost of nearly €47m over the three years.
A proposed near €38m will be spent on economic development, including the purchase of land in strategic areas for the creation of more council-controlled industrial estates. These are specially designed to help small and start-up companies grow their businesses. Many of the local authority’s existing estates are full.
This announcement was welcomed by Fianna Fáil councillor Ian Doyle, who said he has received numerous enquiries from businesses that want to locate to his hometown of Charleville but the council-controlled and private business parks there are at capacity. It’s a similar situation in Mallow.
The economic development budget will also be used to enhance tourism-related projects in the region.
Combatting climate change also features prominently in the three-year programme, with millions set aside to upgrade flood protection and tackle coastal erosion.
Ms Murrell said the council will prioritise projects across the three-year capital investment programmes “that will yield the greatest economic and social dividend” and that the local authority will be “assigning its own internal funding” [on top of expected government grant aid] for the proposed projects “to maximise economic and community stimulus”.
Lorraine Lynch, the council’s director of finance, said the three-year investment programme is ambitious and will require significant government aid, which the council has factored into its plans. However, it has done it with the likelihood that “the asks” will be delivered by central government.
Ms Lynch said that the planned programme of capital investment will be reviewed throughout its juration to assess that expected government funding meets the local authority’s ambitions and the proposed projects can be delivered.