Cork County Council is to take in charge the Springfield estate in Fermoy. The county council’s estates engineer, John Aherne, advised members of the Fermoy local area committee at their meeting on Monday afternoon that the council would do so if residents form a group and make a formal request.

While part of the estate is in town council ownership and part is the county council’s, he said the county council, as the leading agency, would take it in charge.

The estates manager advised that the developer’s bond has been used up. Normally, he said, it’s the developer who requests that an estate be taken in charge, however if that hasn’t been done after 12 years residents can make the proposal themselves. The county manager is considering taking all pre 1990 estates in charge at present and is putting a mechanism in place to fund outstanding works in some 30 estates in the county, where the developers are long since gone, he disclosed.

OUTSTANDING WORKS

Councillor Noel McCarthy said residents of both parts of the estate, town and county council, had problems with outstanding works. He’d brought a deputation to one of their meetings where they outlined their concerns. He thanked the estates manager for taking the matter on board, as did Cllr. Kevin O’Keeffe who asked as to who’d do the outstanding work. Ideally it’d be the developer, Mr. Aherne said, if he’s still there. He was told that the developer still has a number of unsold sites in the estate.

Cllr. McCarthy pointed out that nothing had been done there in 20 years up until lately when some works were done by the council. Sewage is the biggest problem, he said. “Residents are very grateful for what you’ve done already,” Cllr. McCarthy said.

Members were told that residents should e-mail the estates manager and he’d advise them on the procedure for the council taking the estate in charge.

The matter was raised again at Monday evening’s town council meeting by Cllr. Tadhg O’Donovan.  He was advised of the progress made on the matter earlier in the day.