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QUALITY OF LIFE concerns around the government’s plans to reduce minimum apartment sizes have been raised by both experts in housing and people living in already cramped conditions.
The new rules, proposed by Housing Minister James Brown to cut building costs, would decrease the minimum apartment size to approximately the size of two and a half parking spaces and scrap rules relating to the maximum number of one-bedroom and studio apartments in buildings.
The proposed changes, contained in the Planning Design Standards for Apartments, Guidelines for Planning Authorities (2025) bill, are understood to be aiming for a €50,000 to €100,000 cost reduction per apartment.
The government hopes this will improve the viability of apartment building by seeking to address higher development costs, leading to more apartments being built.
But sceptics have expressed concern that all that will happen is that people will end up living in properties that are too small for their needs.
Leading housing expert, Orla Hegarty, Assistant Professor in the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy in UCD, has concerns about the impact smaller apartment sizes will have on families and children, and retired people.
“We can say that we aren’t building this housing for families or people with children, and those who are struggling, but realistically, they will end up living there, because poor people need somewhere to live,” she said.
“32 square metres is tiny, it’s two and a half parking spaces, it’s smaller than most hotel rooms. We’re talking about effectively introducing slum conditions here”, she said.
“In the 1930s the council in Dublin very occasionally built one-bedroom flats on the ground floor of housing developments, and a decision was made that that was not appropriate for people, because it’s very unhealthy to cook in the room you sleep in, or as an older person, to spend all of your time in one room. Inevitably, once again, we will see retired people living in these units,” Hegarty said.
As well as cutting the minimum size, the changes included in Browne’s reforms include dropping mandatory communal facilities and allowing more one-bed and single aspect apartments in developments.
Hegarty feels that questions need to be asked about the role of lobbying by developers in the decision-making process.
She has previously given expert advice on construction costs to the Oireachtas Housing Committee, and questions whether the government’s claim that developers could save €50,000 to €100,000 per unit with these changes.
“The costing doesn’t stack up and there is no evidence for it, none has been produced to date. The apartments will have the same fixtures so all that is being reduced is the structural floorplan”, she said.
“No trained architect would have supported this idea. Architecture is about understanding housing in terms of human needs, and there is an obvious need for space. Living, basically in one room, will greatly impact people’s mental and also physical health,” Hegarty said.
Hegarty also references the lack of public consultation on the issue, with no tenant organisations consulted part of the process, and she expresses concern that developers may seek to make changes to developments already with planning.
“The Minister is talking about 57,000 apartment units that are already permitted. If those are redesigned it will have an impact on drainage, water supply, congestion, it will mean more people living in the developments effectively, so there are questions as to how that could possibly happen under the same planning permission, and as to the legality of that,” she added.
Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne raised the issue of the “liveability” of apartments in Ireland if the government were to proceed with the proposed changes and a number of people who already live in small units have echoed those concerns.
Rory, who lives in a studio apartment in Dublin city centre, said the proposed changes would be “tough going” for tenants and would “probably have a knock-on effect for people’s’ mental health”.
Rory said the hardest part about living in a studio flat is the lack of room to relax and cook.
“You probably tend to go out a lot more because you don’t really feel comfortable in your own home”, he said, highlighting that not feeling comfortable at home leads to “unnecessary spending” on eating out.
He said “you wouldn’t be looking forward” to cooking as constantly hits himself off cupboards or counters when trying to navigate his kitchen space.
“You’re just trying to find space to open a press and not hit your head off it because you forgot how little room you have to manoeuvre”, he said.
He also finds it hard to relax in the evenings as he doesn’t have space for a couch. “Your living area is your bed”, he said.
He also feels reluctant to bring guests over due to the lack of space.
Lauren Textor pays €1,150 (before electricity bills) to rent a converted garage in Celbridge, Co. Kildare, with her partner. She said one of the hardest things about living in her apartment, which is under 50 square metres, is “having someone constantly in my space”.
Lauren grew up sharing a room with her sister, but said sharing a room as a child feels less claustrophobic than sharing a small apartment as an adult.
“There isn’t really room to be alone”, she said, explaining that if she were to watch TV in the same room as her partner when he had headphones on, she would still hear everything as the “space is so small”.
The size of their home dictates many decisions Lauren and her partner make.
“We wouldn’t be able to have a child here, we can’t really have people over”, she said, adding that it makes visits from her family in America difficult.
She adds that she also only uses IKEA furniture made for specifically for small spaces, something she dislikes as a sustainable shopper.
Lauren believes there are a many things they “don’t have the space for” that would make her life “a little bit easier”. For example, the couple only have enough counter space for a kettle and a toaster.
“I used to love thrifting, now every time I buy something I think, do we have space for this?”
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