Council plans compulsory purchase orders for unsafe Letterkenny buildings

Donegal County Council is to push on with plans to issue compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) on a series of buildings in the heart of Letterkenny that have been declared potentially unsafe.

The buildings at Main Street/Market Square have been cordoned off with barriers since June and the matter raised its head again at the latest meeting of the Letterkenny-Milford Municipal District.

Numbers 2, 4 and 6 Upper Main Street were declared by structural engineers as potentially unsafe.

Councillor Jimmy Kavanagh said it is 'essential' that the local authority proceed with a CPO of the building and demolish it.

“We can't make progress on the Market Square without progress on this,” he said. It was a point echoed by Councillor Donal Coyle, who added: “If we put diggers into the market square tomorrow, I guarantee that the building would fall.”

Acknowledging that there will be an expense on the council, Cllr Kavanagh said the council will in turn benefit from an “excellent site”.

Cllr Kavanagh said the current cordon in the town centre is posing a hazard. “It’s a nightmare for any pedestrian. I’ve watched people with buggies trying to walk along there with traffic on top of them, it’s scary to watch.”

The owners of a total of 46 derelict properties have been identified across the Letterkenny area with 12 CPOs now being enacted by the Council.

Councillor Ciaran Brogan told the meeting that 'a strong message' had to go out that 'the Council is going after the derelict properties'.

“We have been allocated 26 million in total for the regeneration of Letterkenny and it is an exciting time for the town, but these works are overdue,” Councillor Brogan said.

“We have to send out the message that we are serious here. We need to support existing business people who are working very hard to keep businesses opened in the heart of the town.”

Elected members held a workshop at the Milford Public Services Centre on Tuesday morning on the issue of dereliction.

“We don't see the same problems in other towns,” Councillor Kavanagh said. “The number of derelict buildings gives visitors a very different impression. It is absolutely vital for Letterkenny that we make substantial progress in dereliction. If we do that, it would absolutely transform the town.”

Councillor Donal 'Mandy' Gallagher said businesses in Letterkenny are suffering and said that a collective push forward was needed.

“We need to ensure that it's fast forwarded and that we keep the pressure on.”

Councillor Donal Coyle called for added urgency on projects that have been awarded a share of the €18.1million Urban Regeneration and Development Funding, including the reimagining of the Market Square.

“We have very little to show for the regeneration of Letterkenny town over the last five years,” Councillor Coyle said.

“All we have is 100m of the LK Green Connect path and I don’t think that’s good enough.”

Councillor Coyle called for action on the unsafe buildings on Main Street to make way for the Market Square project, saying “delivery is what it’s all about.”

“It’s very complex work but the work is going to be done,” echoed Mayor Gerry McMonagle.

The latest update from Donegal County Council in relation to the building currently cordoned off at Market Square said that it has engaged an independent Chartered Structural Engineer and legal representation to assist in addressing the issue.

“The Council will continue to liaise with all parties to ensure that the essential works necessary are carried out by the property owners, to make the properties and site safe and minimise closures to the existing public footpath, carriageway, and parking areas,” a statement said.

Meanwhile, rergarding the proposed reimaging of the Market Square, the Council said: “External consultancy services have been procured to prepare the detailed design for the Market Square and this work is progressing well.

“It is intended to seek a workshop with the Members in the coming weeks to provide an update on the work carried out to date, to seek feedback on the detailed design and to provide timelines for the next steps in terms of tendering and commencement of the works.”