€1m work outstanding before Westbury takeover

IMPROVEMENT works costing an estimated €1 million is needed in one of the largest housing estates in South-East Clare, a local senior engineer has revealed.
Senior executive engineer Hugh McGrath has estimated the large scale work needs to be done before Clare County Council can take in charge the Westbury Housing Estate.
Mr McGrath told a recent meeting of the Killaloe Electoral Area that he didn’t have a definite date as to when the council would be in a position to take Westbury in charge.
Acknowledging the frustration being expressed by local county councillors about the delay, Mr McGrath said when he joined the council as an engineer in 2001 he was sent to Westbury to complete some work in relation to assessing what work needed to be done.
“Negotiations are continuing with the insurance companies holding bonds on this estate. While progress has been very slow, it is anticipated that sufficient information will be in place in the next six to eight weeks to determine the positions of each party with a view to reaching a conclusion.
“Some improvement works have been carried out by the insurance company already in the areas of storm drainage, lighting, and survey work CCTV and water auditing as well as minimal ongoing maintenance of the infrastructure, which is the responsibility of the receivers and or liquidators of the former developers, McInerney and Chieftain,
“The council are active in ensuring the most expedient conclusion of this issue,” he said.
He provided the update following a joint notice of motion tabled by Councillors Pascal Fitzgerald and Cathal Crowe requesting an update of the taking in charge of the Westbury Housing Estate and details of any works that have been carried out recently.
Stating that some parts of the Westbury Estate are 25 years old, Councillor Fitzgerald said three years ago he was informed that substantial progress had been made on the takeover of the estate.
He claimed it was time the council sat down and “bit the bullet” in terms of resolving this issue to give some “peace of mind” to local residents.
Proposing the work to bring the estate up to a reasonable standard could be done on a phased basis, he said it is a joke for the Government to be looking for people to pay the €100 household charge while some residents in Westbury don’t have the benefit of basic services.
Councillor Crowe recalled about 18 months ago there was a major sewerage blockage in the estate affecting at least 12 houses where residents were forced to get sewer rods to try and free up the system.
“I don’t think this is happening in Mongolia. When the water mains burst during the freeze up two years ago, the council couldn’t go in and help local residents,” he said.
He said there is an incorrect perception that the proceeds from the household charge would result in a lot of additional local authority services in South-East Clare.
A number of councillors expressed concern about how some houses in unfinished estates were exempt from the household charge and other  dwellings were not.
Councillor Pat Burke described the Government’s collection of the household charge as a “mess” and admitted the whole issue was not well handled.
Councillor Fitzgerald was also critical of the Labour Party for not ensuring the administration of the household charge was handled much better and not providing enough information to the public.
Councillor Michael Begley expressed concern that a list of estates where safety works needed to be carried out was compiled by the council under Category Four and sent to the Department of the Environment where someone took a decision to link this with the exemption of the household charge.
Senior executive officer Michael McNamara noted Clare County Council didn’t select what estate would be exempt from the household charge.
Mayor of Clare, Councillor Pat Hayes said it was important to note that revenue from the household charge would support the provision of existing and not extra local authority services.