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IT HAS BEEN ten months since the 256 residents of Priory Hall were evacuated from their homes because of fire safety concerns.
Since then, Dublin City Council has been providing temporary accommodation but no work to remedy the situation at the Donaghmede complex has been undertaken.
The substandard fire safety work had created an environment so hazardous that the council could not allow anyone to live there until €7.3 million worth of repair works were carried out.
One of the previous occupants, Graham Usher, visited his property for the “first time in months” earlier this week.
“Ten months on and nothing has been done,” he told TheJournal.ie. “They look in a bit of a state, as you can image.”
Security personnel, who have been on guard at the complex since 17 October, told Usher to be careful because the number of rats spotted on the grounds has escalated.
The damp problems in individual apartments have also worsened, with one resident noting that mould had started to grow on the walls of her home.
“The place is deteriorating fast,” continued Usher. “There is no electricity so it is just getting dank and damp.”
The financial predicament that the residents now face has “put their lives on hold”. “I think people are struggling at this stage. Almost a year on, people want it to come to an end.
“It is impossible to plan for the future. The temporary accommodation is fine but the problem is living month to month. Living life by court dates. It is the uncertainty that gets to us.”
Dublin City Council are waiting for the hearing date for a Supreme Court appeal against an order which made it responsible for paying for the current housing of the residents.
Last month, the developer Tom McFeely won his appeal to have a three month prison sentence and €1 million fine overturned.
The banks, residents and DCC are also in the midsts of a resolution process but the former residents have declined to comment on the proceedings. “We’ll have to wait and see what happens,” added Usher.
Yesterday, Fine Gael councillor Paddy McCartan said he will ask the Dublin City Manager to claim costs from the sale of the repossessed home of McFeely in order to offset costs the council has had to bear to provide temporary accommodation.
He believes the total bill from the “whole debacle” will reach almost €2 million. The councillor said he will be raising the issue at the next meeting in September.
“Residents and many young families have paid the highest price for the actions of the Priory Hall developer…and nobody has lost sight of that,” he said. “I feel very sympathetic towards them, particularly given they are still responsible to maintain mortgages on these worthless properties.
“However, the council also needed to be recompensed and I will be calling on the Dublin City Manager and council officials to engage with NAMA to ensure that some or all of the proceeds of the sale of McFeely’s former residence on Ailesbury Road in Ballsbridge be transferred to Dublin City Council to ease the financial burden that it now shoulders.”
NAMA could not comment on the request as it does not issue statements on individual debtors.
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Vincent Brown is an excellent interviewer. No wonder many politicians wish to avoid him e.g. Gerry Adams.
Enda Kenny is scared shitless of Vincent Brown .
Actually at times he comes across as a bully. Especially last week when he was supposed to interviewing an ex British Army officer who served in Afgahnistan on the security situation in the ME and proceeded to verbally assault and berate him for decisions taken by his govt. that he had no input into whatsoever. It was obvious he had been set up for an ambush by Browne. Shameful stuff.
considering all the British Army ambushes in Ireland or “terrorist attacks” as they called them at the time then was this not Karma from Mr. Browne ?
Northern Ireland – Proof the U.N. is an over-paid waffle shop for the bewildered !
Enda Kenny is scared of his own reflection……
Some say his own reflection doesn’t even like him…
And what will happen in the end is that Browne’s show will suffer for his ambush tactics, as he’ll struggle to get high profile guests. Instead he’ll be stuck interviewing clowns from People before Profit or the AAA.
Scipio, do you just complain about everything?
Vincent Browne has reduced himself to the level of an political Jeremy Kyle. No serious politician will ever go on his show unless it’s absolutely necessary.
Skippy is bang on the money, he’s already the level where his staple guests are irrelevant nutters like Joe Higgins, Declan Ganley and that PBP fool in the checked shirt.
Yet he still draws in big names in Irish politics and culture, draws in over 160,000 viewers in one of the worst slots and is good enough to be compared to Jeremy Paxman by the Guardian. Jon Snow of Channel 4 News is often called a bully, yet he’s still one of the most highly respected British journalists and Channel 4 has few problems drawing in highly significant people for interviews, even when the interviewees are at their most vulnerable. Basically, your claims have nothing to support them
You know his show is online right? I can actually open it up in my browser and sit here asking myself who are these people. Some of them are only there because they have twitter accounts.
It’s kinda like government backbenchers isn’t Ron ? …Who are these people all they have is Party Support …….
Has he had Twink on yet? It’s only a matter of time.
Yeah Twink would certainly qualify as one of those leading lights of Irish culture that ‘Free Gaza’ was talking about.
No she sticks to R.T.E. – just like Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Labour – Sinn Fein were banned from R.T.E. during the British Army “Terror with terror” (their own words) campaign until Paddy decided to call of the Grand National and we got to see all the posh British crying because their horseys couldn’t run around a field …
That was funny – and no bomb at all, at all ……
Scipio – Anyone who opens a comment with ‘you are an idiot’ , has clearly already lost the argument .
Except if they’re obviously addressing an idiot.
Scipio, completely misquoting me yet again. Never said anything about the leading lights of Irish culture. I simply said that Vincent Browne consistently has big enough names when it comes to the Irish context. I don’t know half the people on Frontline, the Late Late Show, Question Time or Newsnight most of the time so that’s hardly a measure of the presenter’s/interviewer’s credibility and skill. There are over 220 politicians at a national level in Ireland, plus almost a thousand at local level, never mind all the other politicians and activists across the island.
Ron mentioned the “irrelevant nutters” that appear on his show, yet we all know who Joe Higgins and Declan Ganley are, what they stand for and we actually pay some sort of attention to what they say or do, whether we take them seriously or not.
The fact that Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, Labour and the lovely Twink all stick to RTE supports the point that Skippy was making Dermot.
Section 31 and ‘horseys’ are not relevant to this conversation..
Brown completely demolished Joan when she was on the show with Joe Higgins. She has never been on it since!
Seriously do any of you think Kenny or any of his likes would have the neck to go on Vincent Browne ..I don’t ..he is actually excellent at not letting his “guests” off the hook …id love to see Kenny.try to worm his way out of his broken election vows
This is just more proof of his legend status .
Answer the question to quote ..Vincent
Vincent would eat Enda for breakfast and Enda knows it.
Big fan of him. And he can have a bit of craic too.
Brown a big bully
he’s fantastic takes no shite .
I am so sick of fools calling people irrelevant just cause they’re not in the big four parties. Its toxic to democracy to regard deviation from mainstream politics as laughable or irrelevant. And of course there’s always this feeling its being done to stamp out opposition to those mainstream policies through snide laughter and ridicule
I agree with Sean bent above about the main parties but I would say 3.
The vincent Browne’s and George Hook’s of this country like the status quo and are scared shitless of Sinn Fein coming to power.
They knock them absoultely every chance they get.
Gerry, hook doesn’t deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence as Vincent Brown. He’s a rugby commentator and I see very little intellect.
UTV ireland is fast approaching. TV3 and VINB be afraid, be very afraid.
Enda would be afraid of Fionnán Sheehan.
Yeah the same few politicians on his show like thomas byrne going on about t’frozen chips. Bloody hell.
That was a very important insight into the cluelessness of the economic policies of Fianna fail – that and the fact that irish people had been calling for it for years while they made Frozen Pizzas in Galway for years !
Vincent for president
J-J-JUST ANSWER THE BLOODY QUESTION
have your say