Plans to provide new housing in Dublin city centre and make it an attractive place for people to live.
The Dublin City Commission has announced plans to build housing on 15 sites. A spokesperson outlines the background to the plan.
The number of units of housing accommodation in the centre city is below an acceptable level.
The plans were welcomed by The Liberties Association, a preservation group who have been campaigning for the rebuilding of the area. The Liberties has some of the most historic buildings in the city including ancient churches and cathedrals as well as Marsh's Library, the oldest library in the country. The area also contains important Viking remains. Over the years, people left the area for the suburbs and now Dublin Corporation hopes to reverse this trend.
The main concern is to provide a decent quality of life for people in the area at a reasonable cost.
To ensure that Dublin City remains alive and vital after offices close at teatime.
The plan is to provide housing for people in the centre of Dublin rather than continuing to drive them out to the suburbs and beyond.
Dublin Corporation will begin preparing compulsory purchase orders for the sites identified. Once the sites have been acquired, the plan is to begin building.
It is estimated that overall they'll provide 500 houses and 1,500 flats.
The homes will be allocated to people on the Dublin Corporation housing list. As yet, the cost of the project remains unknown. Funding will be provided by the Department of Local Government.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 11 January 1974. The reporter is Donal Kelly.
