Pretty vacant: Ireland’s empty buildings

Trinity News speaks to Frank O’Connor of Derelict Ireland

As of this year, 183,312 houses lie vacant across the Republic of Ireland, placing us as the country with the 10th highest global rate of vacant homes. The eviction at Prussia Street two weeks ago (October 27) drew widespread outrage, given that the place had been used as a home by a group of occupants, as thousands of properties lie empty in the middle of a housing and homelessness crisis.

Under the Derelict Sites Act of 1990, local councils must identify dereliction, undertake reasonable effort to find the owner, notify the owner of their intention to place the property on the derelict register, value the property through an independent board, place the house on the Derelict Registry, and charge the owner a 7% tax every year. 

The owner may be subject to prosecution if they do not comply with this, or if the derelict site poses a risk of injury to the public. The council is also mandated to seek a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) and, in the event that the property is owned by the council, they are legally required to put in place plans to remove the dereliction. 

“O’Connor and Sherry also founded the Derelict Ireland project, which maps and photographs derelict properties across the country.”

While this act has existed for over 30 years, it is rare that local councils impose the 7% tax, let alone prosecute the owners or pursue further action. Last week, Trinity News spoke to Frank O’Connor, who, along with his partner Jude Sherry, directs Anois, an organisation dedicated to sustainability, circularity, equality and social justice. O’Connor and Sherry also founded the Derelict Ireland project, which maps and photographs derelict properties across the country. O’Connor said that when he and Sherry returned to Cork, almost three years ago after years abroad, they were “taken aback with the vacancy, dereliction and decaying heritage and the whole housing crisis”. The two began mapping cities, “walking around and taking photographs”. While the project was in its infancy, O’Connor remarked that “the dereliction had become normalised,” and, as a result, “in the conversations that [they] were having with people, they’d say ‘that’s the way things are’”. 

O’Connor says that, alongside the homelessness crisis, there were also many derelict properties with significant cultural value. “Following research on dereliction on decaying heritage sights”, they found “a lot of heritage that’s really valuable – priceless.” O’Connor also draws attention to the lack of community spaces in Ireland: “Places to play and create were being left in a vacant state.”

In June of 2020, during the first Covid-19 lockdown, O’Connor says he and Sherry began to find, photograph and “post a property [to Twitter] every day: a daily dose of dereliction”. While the project garnered support, O’Connor says some challenged the view of Derelict Ireland, circling back to the soundbite that “that’s the way things are”. In response, Derelict Ireland began compiling and debunking common myths surrounding dereliction and vacant properties. Among the misconceptions are the claims that: there’s no profit in dereliction, that owners have no incentives, that the constitution protects private property rights, that taxing dereliction is all that’s possible, CPOs are not a realistic solution, and that progress will not happen without new legislation. 

“O’Connor commented that: ‘We now know, the dereliction element, it’s been built on loads of myths that protect the investors, the land hoarders.’”

On the claim that there is no profit in dereliction, research from Anois, an organisation of which O’Connor and Sherry are directors, shows that “a modest derelict home can bring €20,000 a year through speculation” in Cork City. There are, on the Derelict Register, two properties which have sold for significantly more money than their original valuation. The price sale for commercial properties isn’t publicly available, so can’t ascertain profit margin. 

While some may claim that there are no incentives for owners of derelict sites, Derelict Ireland points out that there are seven different schemes for owners who want to invest their properties in order to sell. Among them are the Architectural Conservation Area Funding, the Repair and Lease Scheme, and the Buy and Renew Scheme. O’Connor commented that: “We now know, the dereliction element, it’s been built on loads of myths that protect the investors, the land hoarders, and really, they’re just myths.” Widespread dereliction isn’t an accident, but “a choice to be this way,” he says. 

In conversation with Trinity News, O’Connor highlighted that the housing crisis is not only responsible for homelessness, but also a lack of community space. He spoke of creatives “struggling to find a community space to work, to create, to play”. This comment came just days after the eviction of those occupying Sunnyvale in Stoneybatter. While the property was many people’s home, it was also a community centre which hosted gigs, bike fixing workshops and a community garden. The fact that the occupants were violently evicted for trying to transform the space into a place for community and culture garnered criticism, particularly given that the building occupied had been vacant for a number of years. 

“’Derelict Ireland, for us… isn’t just about dereliction; it’s about a dereliction of duty. It’s about a break of social contracts.’”

Derelict Ireland also took part in a walking tour with Community Action Tenants Union (CATU) and Reclaim our Spaces in Dublin last month. The tour visited a number of vacant properties in the city centre, including North Frederick Street, where the Take Back the City campaign staged an occupation in 2018. O’Connor emphasises that the housing crisis not only impacts people’s ability to have a roof over their head, but also impacts cultural spaces. Pointing to the proposed destruction of The Cobblestone and Merchant’s Arch, O’Connor describes a “lack of understanding around the value of heritage in Ireland”. He continues to say: “Derelict Ireland, for us… isn’t just about dereliction; it’s about a dereliction of duty. It’s about a break of social contracts. It impacts the liveability of cities and towns.” The ultimate goal of the project is to see urban environments that are liveable, safe and sustainable. “We believe everyone should have a home as a human right. We believe everyone should have access to play and creative spaces.”

Grace Gageby

Grace Gageby is the current Assistant Editor of Trinity News. She studies English and Philosophy and was previously Deputy Comment Editor.