MORE of an increased in activity regarding derelict sites was reported last year than over the preceding five to six years in Clare.
A total of 35 new files were opened on derelict sites in Clare last year, five of which were in the month of December. In total, there are open files on 162 derelict sites in the county.
Clare County Council issued twenty notices of their intention to enter a site included on the derelict sites register last year and entered into four of these while measures were completed on two properties to render them non-derelict.
Last year, files were closed on twenty five sites which were removed from the derelict register in Clare. No compulsory purchase orders were issued in 2021 for derelict properties in the county.
So far in 2022, six new files have been opened on derelict sites, four notices of intention to enter have been issued, three sites have been entered, one file has been closed and three compulsory purchase orders have been issued.
An appeal for further context on the numbers by giving years by which the properties became derelict was voiced by Cllr Cillian Murphy (FF) at a recent sitting of the Council.
Carmel Greene of the Economic Development Directorate acknowledged that derelict sites had become “a really topical issue” and said Murphy’s request could be carried out. “We are seeing an increase in activity last year more so than we did over the last five to six years, we’re trying to get it back high on our Council agenda,” she added.
