Letterkenny Town Councillor Jimmy Kavanagh has called on the council to update the derelict sites register for the town and to set about enforcing the terms of the derelict sites act, in an effort to rid the town of derelict buildings and sites.
Under the Derelict Sites Act, the owners of urban land or property listed on the derelict sites register must pay an annual levy to their local authority of three percent of the market value of their property; this can subsequently rise to a maximum of ten percent.
Cllr Kavanagh now wants a survey of the Letterkenny Town Council area and an upgrade of the derelict sites register and to adopt a policy of zero tolerance in the enforcement of the levies payable under the Act.
“Derelict sites and boarded up houses give a bad impression, they are a magnet for anti social behaviour, they lower the value of the houses around them, and they undermine the magnificent work being done by the tidy towns committee.
“In a number of instances the owners of derelict houses in the town live far away from them and seem to care little that their properties are an eyesore, these owners are also well removed from the anti social behaviour that their boarded up houses attract.
“In other cases the owners are banks and other state agencies, and I feel that if the penalties under the Act were strictly enforced that these particular owners would be compelled to deal with the problem much more quickly.” Kavanagh concluded.
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