Cork County Council say they are optimistic that the number of unfinished estates in North Cork will reduce by at least half over the next 12 months.
Currently there are 28 unfinished estates in North Cork, down from 39 estates in July 2015, which represents a 25% reduction in two years.
Locally, there are currently unfinished estates in Ballyhooly (An Gleann Ull and Lios Ard), Castlelyons (Berry Hill and Ar Na Ri), Castletownroche (Mullavale), Fermoy (Crann Ard), Kilworth (Moin an Ri), Mitchelstown (Lui Na Greine and Sliabh Alainn) and Rathcormac (Shanowen).
According to the Council’s Senior Planner Andrew Hind, the pace at which the housing market has picked up in North Cork suggests that the number of estates in the area could be down to single figures by 2018.
“One of the big trends in North Cork has been the number of estates where the developer, who had not been active in the estate for a number of years, has become active and so we are actually progressing in the normal way in a number of estates,” he said, at the Council’s northern committee meeting this month.
TAKING IN CHARGE A KEY AIM
Mr Hind added that the bond holders on unfinished estates are ‘becoming increasingly keen to pay out, to get rid of the liability off their books’ and that there are seven cases in North Cork were the Council is expecting a bond settlement in due course, which it will use to remedy issues within the relevant estate.
The key aim, he said, is to complete unfinished estates to Taking In Charge (TIC) standard.
Mr Hind said AIB, who are the bond holder in 13 ongoing cases, and the Council, have had a ‘very good working relationship’ over the past two years. The Council hope to secure a bond settlement in 2017 on 14 unfinished estates in North Cork, which will facilitate the TIC stage.
There are also another 17 estates, not considered as being unfinished estates, with ‘minor defects’ that are being considered for TIC.
