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Updated at 2.50pm
THE RECEIVERS TO Apollo House have launched a High Court action aimed at regaining possession of the property.
It follows the release of a statement from the receivers earlier today in response to the occupation of the Dublin building late last week by a group of activists who have set up a temporary hostel for the homeless.
The statement from Tom O’Brien of Mazars calls on the group behind the effort, Home Sweet Home, “to immediately end the current occupation in the best interests of those who are staying there”.
It said that the receivers had tried several times to meet with the group, to no avail, and warned that if cooperation was not immediately forthcoming, “we have no option but to take the only responsible course available and look for assistance from the court”.
Rossa Fanning SC, for the receivers, told the High Court this afternoon that due to the occupation the building, which has been vacant since mid-2015, it no longer has fire insurance and that its public liability insurance will lapse on in mid-January unless the receivers are able to regain possession.
They also say that there are a number of serious health and safety risks that make the building unsuitable for use as a shelter.
The former office block, they say was never intended to be used for residential purposes and required extensive maintenance. They have particular concerns over the electricity supply which had been cut and was restored by the occupiers.
There was also a risk of people tripping and falling down stairwells in the building, there were concerns about the building’s water supply and there is no provision for the removal of waste.
As a result of the occupation the receivers, who want to sell the property, are seeking injunctions requiring all those in occupation to vacate the premises.
Justice Paul Gilligan granted lawyers for the receivers permission to serve short notice of the injunction proceedings on solicitors purported representing the occupiers. Noting health and safety concerns, he made the matter returnable for tomorrow morning.
Should the court grant the injunctions sought, the joint receivers, Fanning continued, were also prepared to accept a timeline from the court for the occupiers to leave the building.
Response
Responding to the news this afternoon outside Apollo House, activist Rosi Leonard said they would be consulting with their legal team before deciding how to respond.
Speaking after a free concert at the building by Glen Hansard and others, attended by hundreds of people, she said that the attendance showed there was huge public support for the project and others like it.
Leonard said that there appeared to be an effort to paint the activists as irresponsible, but argued that it was the government that was being irresponsible by choosing to leave buildings vacant while people were sleeping rough on the streets.
Apollo House
Activists with the group – which is supported by well-known figures like Hansard, Damien Dempsey and film director Jim Sheridan – moved into the building late on Thursday night.
Around 30 people are now staying in the former Department of Social Protection Building near Tara Street Dart station each night, according to Home Sweet Home organiser and union activist Brendan Ogle.
Volunteers working to kit-out the disused building say they have been overwhelmed with support from the public, and intend to maintain their presence at the site to draw attention to the problem of homelessness.
The statement
Today’s statement from Mazars, the receivers appointed by Nama, said “our immediate priority and concern has been the health and safety of the homeless people seeking shelter there”.
While we endorse the importance of highlighting the need for providing shelter to the homeless and the most vulnerable in society, the provision of such sheltered accommodation must be done in an organised, structured and sustainable manner. That is not possible in Apollo House.
“We immediately engaged with Dublin City Council and homeless charities who provide shelter and care to the homeless with a view to ensuring that appropriate alternative accommodation, with the necessary facilities and staff, would be available to those who might seek shelter in Apollo House.
“All homeless charities recognise as a fundamental principle that shelter accommodation must be staffed by trained and properly resourced care professionals in order to create as safe and controlled an environment as possible.”
‘Poor condition’
The statement said that Apollo House is a commercial premises which was closed down in 2015 due to its poor condition, pending redevelopment.
“We share the views of the homeless agencies that the building is completely unsuitable for residential use and lacks the most basic facilities needed by those who are homeless. Notwithstanding the efforts by Home Sweet Home to provide these basic facilities, the building simply does not meet the requirements for a sustainable, safe physical and caring environment.
Another very significant issue is that this illegal occupation of Apollo House has resulted in the loss of fire insurance cover for the building which poses an immediate and significant risk to the occupants and to neighbouring property and occupiers. As the Receivers to Apollo House we cannot responsibly allow this situation to remain.
Relocation
The statement said that Dublin City Council had confirmed they expect 210 new beds to become available this week in three city centre facilities.
“These facilities are run by homeless agencies who provide not just beds but a full professional support service comprising professional care, medical and counselling staff along with access to public health nurses. Dublin City Council has agreed to work with these housing agencies so that all those sheltering in Apollo House can be accommodated in these facilities.
“Our overriding concern is for the health and safety of those who are homeless currently staying in Apollo House. The Receivers have tried to meet with Home Sweet Home in order to organise a move of those in Apollo House to appropriate accommodation with the full support services provided. We call on those behind Home Sweet Home to act responsibly and work with Dublin City Council to immediately end the current occupation in the best interests of those who are staying there.
“We have tried to engage constructively with those involved and have on a number of occasions sought to meet with them but to date, Home Sweet Home have not made themselves available to meet with us.
The situation at Apollo House cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely for the reasons mentioned. In the event that cooperation is not immediately forthcoming, as the Receivers to Apollo House we have no option but to take the only responsible course available and look for assistance from the courts in seeking to resolve this issue in the best interests of those currently in occupation at Apollo House.
Newly-opened hostels
The 210 bed places referenced in the Mazars statement are at hostels at Ellis Quay, Little Britain Street and Francis Street in Dublin city centre.
A judge lifted a stay on the Francis Street Emergency Accommodation unit, at Carmen Hall, last week, and Housing Minister Simon Coveney said in a statement that works were being completed with a view to having the building occupied before Christmas.
The hostels at Ellis Quay and Little Britain Street have been open since 9 December. Dublin City Council confirmed this afternoon that the Carmen Hall hostel would not be open until Thursday.
The twice-yearly Dublin Region Homeless Executive rough sleeper count recorded 142 people sleeping rough in the city area on the night of 22 November.
CEO of Dublin Simon Sam McGuinness said on Friday that emergency beds that had already been opened for the Christmas period were already nearing capacity. The charity’s own rough sleeper count found that over 100 people were still bedding down in the streets or in public parks.
- With reporting by Aodhan O Faolain
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Of course a tenfold increase in farm inspections.
Why?
Because the purpose is to make farming as an industry impossible, drive farmers off their land and force them to sell the land to the state for buttons.
And if anyone objects, the weight of the apparatus of the State will be unleashed on them.
You think I’m wrong, ask Enoch Burke, the same playbook is being rolled out.
@Garry Coll: and if all that fails they are racists…………
@Garry Coll: wow ! There must be more to this story. Those farmers have to be complaining for some reason. I think the truth needs to be revealed.
@Oh Mammy:
Wouldn’t be able to say that, but they are definitely Communist traitors.
@offside again:
Didn’t realise the Journal paid their trolls overtime.
@Oh Mammy: don’t forget your comments this time …
@Garry Coll: what time is it Garry ? 04:54am where I am. How much do you get paid Garry ? Do you get paid overtime ? Your boss is not getting value for money at this hour of the morning.
@offside again: if I do I will count on your photographic to remind me. Thank you!
@Oh Mammy: *memory
@Garry Coll: not the farmers I know. You should go meet one some day. You would learn a lot. (FYI, food does not come from Tesco)
@Garry Coll: and risk having multiple Thomas Reid cases..
@Garry Coll: I was with ya until you mentioned Mr Potato head and his bible thumping nut job family in the end…..Farmers we need, religious attention seeking nutters like the burkes who just wanna be a pain for attention and have beliefs akin to places like Alabama back in 1800′s is not
@Garry Coll: ‘Communist traitors’?
You need professional help for your paranoia. If you were any further to the right you’d fall off the edge.
@Garry Coll: You actually *want* badly polluted and toxic waterways? Is clean water communist?
@Brendan O’Brien: could he already be off the edge?
@Garry Coll: I wouldn’t ask Enoch Burke the fkn time!
@Brendan O’Brien: The state is far and away the largest polluter of our waterways and our air through Co.councils third world water treatment and the ESB, but inconvenient truths seldom get published or reported on, and the state will never take the blame for being the country’s biggest polluter
I support our farmers. Thank you
@Oh Mammy: if they want to pollute our rivers that is their human rights.
@Sal Paradise: Money is far more important than human rights (probably to every commenter here too).
@Sal Paradise: most of the pollution in rivers isn’t from farmers it’s from irish water ironically enough. The last few fish kills were due to sewage and chemicals released into rivers. This still happens and the fines are tiny. People will always blame the farmers. They are a easy target.
The bird population in our area has been decimated. Haven’t seen frog spawn, dragonflies or other marsh dwelling creatures in decades. The water is toxic.
@Don Johnson: Bird populations are also affected by Wind Turbines , high mortality rates around them & also by the Mink population which has exploded around Ireland, I have witnessed entire populations of ducks on lakes wiped out by Mink, so it’s not just farming, waste water treatment plants around us & septic tanks are the biggest culprits, Farmers are just the easy targets all the time, particularly for the Green Party & it’s members.
@SV3tN8M4: I would wager the impact of septic tanks on slobland wildlife is fairly negligible. All evidence points to farmers as the highest culprit in polluting the waterways. But as usual they’ll play the tiresome victim card instead of taking responsibility for a change.
@SV3tN8M4: But you agree that slurry should be properly managed, right?
@Don Johnson: show me your evidence. The last number of fish kills were irish water. Irish water has also been pumping sewage into the sea….
@Brendan O’Brien: Yes, so too should Waste Water treatment plants, whose record is been covered up by the EPA. Many factors in the decline of bird population, solely not the reserve of Farmers. Farmers are No. 1 target for the Green Party, but Aviation, Cement Plants & Data Centres are exempt in their eyes. The Greens will make Ireland food dependent very quickly & destroy our Agricultural export market,costing thousands of jobs in rural communities.
Thank-you for such an informative article! Have to say I’m with Fogarty on this one. It’s down to basic maths – more farm animals, more slurry spreading results in poorer water quality. Perhaps more frequent farm inspections will highlight this issue further. But what will be done then? Of course we need excellent produce, especially for our export market but at the end of the day, is the bigger profit margin worth such a decline in our water quality? Is it??
@Susan Gaines: No, greed is destroying this country and the planet
A straight to the comments article for sure. Excuse my ignorance..
@Paul Gorry: It was a long one for sure.
They should clean the roads after they move cattle or when they are spreading slurry. In my experience most do not. When it rains it is treacherous on these roads, They put down matting across a road to move cattle and this is totally illegal and dangerous. I can only imagine what the EPA inspections find on the inside of the farms.
Scientists and active farmers need to have relationships of mutual trust.
Good to see how well Limerick and Cork are doing
As long as beef can be exported right? To feed the world our environment for the profit of who?
@Chutes: you do realize that in ireland we have the perfect climate to grow grass. It’s not really suited to growing fruit or wheat for bread as we don’t get enough sun light. We could trade our surplus of beef for those items. That’s how it’s always worked here. Also you know that a field full of grass has healthy soils full of nutrients and carbon is locked up in it. We can’t eat the grass but the cows can. Meaning our Milk and butter is among the best in the world.
@Washpenrebel: While it’s true that Ireland’s climate is ideal for growing grass, stating that the country cannot effectively produce fruit or wheat due to insufficient sunlight isn’t entirely accurate. Advances in agricultural techniques and the use of resilient crop varieties have enabled Irish farmers to successfully cultivate a variety of fruits and cereals. For example, Ireland has a growing apple industry, and grains like barley and oats are commonly produced for both domestic use and export.
Relying heavily on beef production raises significant environmental concerns. Livestock farming, particularly cattle, is a major source of methane—a greenhouse gas that is over 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide in trapping heat in the atmosphere over a 100-year period, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Ireland reports that agriculture accounts for about one-third of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions, with methane from enteric fermentation in ruminant animals being a primary contributor.
While grasslands do sequester carbon in the soil, the methane emissions from cattle often offset these benefits. Additionally, overgrazing can lead to soil degradation and a loss of biodiversity. Diversifying agricultural practices to include more crop cultivation can improve soil health through crop rotation and reduce dependency on a single industry.
Trading surplus beef for essential items like fruit and wheat may not be sustainable in the long term. It exposes the country to global market fluctuations and potential trade disruptions, which can affect food security. Producing a wider range of crops domestically can reduce the carbon footprint associated with importing goods and promote a more resilient local food system.
Moreover, while Irish dairy products like milk and butter are highly regarded, it’s important to balance production with environmental sustainability. Implementing practices that reduce emissions, such as improving feed efficiency and manure management, can help mitigate the environmental impact.
In summary, Ireland has the potential to broaden its agricultural outputs beyond livestock, which can lead to environmental benefits and enhanced food security without compromising the quality of its renowned dairy products.
@Chutes: irish grasslands sequestration of carbon have been found to be 4.5 times higher than what is currently being allowed. This data is from the dept of agriculture own study in johnstown castle Co wexford. This means their are many farms in ireland that are carbon sinks and do not produce excess carbon. Cows are not the problem here.
A dry day in the counrtyside now accompanied by the smell of shit, the tourists must love it! I fkn hate it, I’m old enough to remember when we had a countryside, ya know, one with wildlife back before it was an industrial farm, the young’ns won’t remember.
@Chutes: The place is full of wild life. Hedgehogs eating the cats food, the cats drop dead shrews, mice, rats and birds at the back door every couple of days. A bumper crop of swallows nests on the house. Dead badgers and foxes on the roads, buzzards in sky picking off young pheasants, lurchers chasing hares in the distance, wasps nest in the compost heap, herrings in the river picking off the fish. Horseflies, midges and daddy longlegs everywhere.
@P. V. Aglue: While it may appear that the area is abundant with wildlife, several factual considerations suggest otherwise. Hedgehog populations, for instance, have been declining significantly in many regions due to habitat loss and road fatalities, making frequent sightings less common than implied. Similarly, swallows have experienced population decreases attributed to changes in agricultural practices and loss of nesting sites, so a “bumper crop” of nests is unlikely without conservation efforts in place.
Buzzards primarily feed on carrion and small rodents rather than young pheasants, and their hunting patterns don’t typically involve preying extensively on game birds. The mention of dead badgers and foxes on roads highlights human impact on wildlife rather than a thriving ecosystem; roadkill incidents are a leading cause of mortality for these animals.
Furthermore, herons (likely what was meant by “herrings”) are affected by water pollution and habitat destruction, which can limit their ability to feed on fish in rivers. The prevalence of pests like wasps, horseflies, midges, and daddy longlegs is often influenced by environmental imbalances, sometimes caused by reduced numbers of their natural predators.
Overall, while individual encounters with wildlife can give the impression of abundance, many species are facing challenges that reduce their populations. Human activities have significantly altered habitats, and the presence of certain animals may be more indicative of ecological imbalance than of a healthy, wildlife-rich environment.
@Chutes: The weather has the biggest impact on ecology imbalances. The cold wet spring this year was bad for the bumble bee. The beast from the east freeze of 2018 and 2010 and 12 killed thousands of birds, big and small. A bad flood will drowned out the fox, badger,and rabbit population in an area.In the next few years ash dieback will really take hold and 10s of thousands of trees will be cut down, fireblight will start effecting the hedge rows country wide, killing miles and miles of habit. All imported diseases by a government scheme jumping to the eco lobby groups. What seems like the right thing to do, can do more harm in the long run.
@P. V. Aglue: Your degree in ecologigal studies is from where? Forgive me if I think your opinion ill-informed and ignore.
@Chutes: ecological
All these pimps should be run from the farm gates , the Agri. Dept . Haven’t a clue about what goes on or how a farm is run.
Our council should retrain the dog and litter wardens as they seem to do f all dog and litter inspections!
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