Traveller accommodation management under scrutiny

CLARE County Council’s management of Traveller accommodation in Ennis is under the spotlight again this week after vandals caused thousands of euros worth of damage to a halting site near the town bypass.

Extensive damage to the Beechpark Halting Site on the Kilmaley Road has sparked outrage in the community with some calling for a total closure of the site.
The remains of a house gutted by a recent fire, which was the scene of a death of a local Traveller last January, was demolished and the rubble taken away by contractors working for Clare County Council on Tuesday. The fire at the site is the subject of an ongoing garda investigation.
Council workers were undertaking a major clean up and refurbishment  when The Clare Champion visited the site on Friday. Clare County Council confirmed the current refurbishment works at the site cost approximately €50,000 and that since the beginning of the month, in excess of €8,500 or €2,856 per week was spent on 24-hour security. The accommodation was opened in July 2004 at a cost of approximately €2 million.
The Clare Champion understands that most of the residents vacated the site a few months ago, apart from one of the bays which appeared to be occupied. There is no evidence that the damage was caused by any former or current resident.
“Clare County Council operates an estate management and combating anti-social behaviour policy for our housing. The policy operates on the basis of the council being able to investigate complaints. The council constantly encourages tenants to be proactive with us in ensuring that there is quality of life within all public housing. In this regard, tenant and resident co-operation is crucial,” said Fiona Mooney, acting senior executive officer at the council’s Housing Social and Cultural Services.
Explaining the current condition of the property and the spend on security, Ms Mooney said “Coinciding with the surrender of tenancies following an arson attack on a house, there were ongoing incidences of vandalism and illegal dumping which necessitated the provision of 24-hour security, which has been in place since April 1. The cost of the security detail is  €2,856 per week. This arrangement will remain in place until the refurbishment of the development is complete and the homes have been reoccupied.”
Councillor James Breen claimed the accommodation was akin to a “bomb site”.
“I have never seen anything like this in all my years. No more Traveller accommodation should be provided in this county until all available accommodation is fully occupied.
“I know elderly people who are waiting for the provision of walk-in showers but they can’t get them because the council says it has no money. However, the council seems to have plenty money to refurbish these houses,” he said.
Local man Pat Barry recalled Bishop Willie Walsh had supported residents to get the initial location of the site moved further away from the Ennis bypass before it was constructed. Mr Barry claimed residents were assured by council officials before the site was built that it would be a state-of-the-art Traveller accommodation with proper tenancy agreements.
“The damage caused to this site is disgraceful. It could cost hundreds of thousands of euro to repair,” he estimated.
Another resident, Randal Behan added that the council assured the community this accommodation would be properly maintained. “What has happened at this site is a total disregard for taxpayers’ money. There was supposed to be no illegal parking of caravans or burning of rubbish. Black smoke has been seen from the site in recent months. A caretaker was also supposed to be provided.
“I don’t think the council are capable of managing this site…how can they keep throwing good money after bad. Unless this site is going to be properly managed, it should be shut down,” he said.
However, Traveller representative, Heather Rosen, stated no one should accuse any of the residents of causing the damage, as it is not yet established who is responsible.
Describing the trashing of the site as “sad and lamentable”, Ms Rosen claimed people need to look at the source of problems in Traveller halting sites. Stressing she would not attempt to excuse what had happened, she said Travellers couldn’t bear to live in the Beechpark site because of the ill-conceived way it was designed when it was built.
Despite the best efforts of Traveller representatives, she claimed the council bowed to residents’ demands to build the site in a hollow surrounded by high concrete walls, which “ghettoised” the occupants and left them feeling isolated from the community.
“I agree with residents that the Beechpark Halting Site was a terrible waste of money because of where it was built. How much did the council spend on providing high reinforced concrete walls? How can people live in a place that is segregated and down in a hollow?
“Traveller accommodation in Clare has been provided contrary to national guidelines. There needs to be outrage at the way the Beechpark site was built in the first place,” she claimed.
Clare County Council disputes this claim, stating that “Beechpark was designed to the highest standards and to reflect the needs of Travellers. The development was also designed following extensive consultation with the local Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee, which includes Travellers and Traveller representatives”.
Fiona Mooney added, “The council has at all times endeavored to operate best practice in estate management at Beechpark, including the provision of site caretaking arrangements. In addition, since its construction and occupation six years ago, the council has spent €90,000 on the maintenance of this development, excluding staff costs,” she concluded,
The works on the Beechapark site will be completed and it will be occupied in three weeks, the council confirmed.

Former resident speaks out on site conditions
A FORMER resident of the Beechpark Halting Site has refuted suggestions that previous occupants are responsible for damage.
Astrid McCarthy has also accused Clare County Council of not taking into account the distress caused by the tragic deaths of her partner’s son and her uncle when she decided to vacate the site last January.
Ms McCarthy claimed she could be left homeless with her partner, Michael Sherlock and two children because she can’t afford to pay rent on a four-bedroom house on the outskirts of Ennis for the family.
She alleged the council has refused to grant the family rent allowance because the authority stated she had willingly given up a house in Beechpark. However, Ms McCarthy maintains the council is not taking into account the trauma she endured before she left the site, even though it is aware of some of the tragedies her family are still struggling to cope with.
While the council stated it cannot comment on any particular application, it confirmed that “where local authority dwellings are surrendered by tenants, it is not council policy to support applications to the HSE for rent supplement”.
A few months after the death of her partner’s son, Astrid alleged her house was petrol bombed, which left her family terrified.
“I can’t pinpoint what started or caused it. Windows in the house were broken and an old mattress we had left out for recycling was set on fire. We are not involved in any feuding and we keep to ourselves.
“It was frightening to live in a hollow surrounded by walls that were eight to ten feet high. People started to come during the middle of the night to burn scrap and rubbish,” she recalled.
She left Beechpark on January 28, just over a week after her uncle also died in tragic circumstances.
“There was no damage caused to my house before we left. I provided photographic evidence of the burning of rubbish to the council after I had given up my tenancy and I had begged the council for security cameras, but they said they had no money for cameras. Now they seem to have plenty of money to repair the damage.
She added that she doesn’t believe the damage was caused by residents of Beechpark. “I didn’t give up the tenancy willingly. I was reasonably happy living in Beechpark, but I wasn’t happy with the barriers or the high walls and the lack of security,” she concluded.