St Michael's Estate haunt DCC with the Ghosts of Christmases past, present and future

dublin | housing | news report Monday December 01, 2008 21:46 by Paula Geraghty mspgeraghty at gmail dot com 0876101340

St. Michael’s Estate organised a protest at City Hall on Monday the 1st December at 6.00pm to coincide with the Dublin City Council meeting scheduled for 7.00pm where councillors will report to the City Council after their Boston ‘Junket’ to look at a housing project. Locals from St. Michaels Estate, O’Devaney Gardens and Dominic Street are protesting to show their anger at the Minister and Dublin City Council’s lack of action.

The festive season was well and truly on its way as camapigners from collapsed McNamara Regeneration schemes from around Dublin City sang
'Jingle Bells,
The Government sells,
all our land- away.................'

People had embraced the Christmas spirit with a true Dickensian zeal dressed up as the ghost of Christmas past, present and future.

The following is from a press release available to download from their website:

Speaking about the protest, Rita Fagan a member of the Regeneration Team said,
“This is the third regeneration plan that St. Michael have had. The first plan would have been built by this stage, but it was rejected by the Department of Environment in favour of the Public Private Partnership model which was to be a much ‘quicker’ more ‘efficient’ model. It has failed. Dublin City Council are disastrous at managing regeneration and the evidence is there. After 10 years of work and with millions wasted not a brick has been laid since PPP was adopted. The latest is that Housing Michael Michael Finnernan has set up a ‘Special Task Force’ to deal with the issue but where is this Task Force? who is on it? We don’t need more committees we need homes and community amenities”.

Since the collapse of St Michael’s Estate regeneration plan with McNamara/Castlethorn construction on 19th May, Minister Gormley, Minster Finnernan, Dublin City Council or local councillors have taken any decisive or worthwhile action. Speaking about the protest, John Bissett, Member of St Michaels Regeneration Team and author of the forthcoming book Regeneration, Public Good or Private Profit said
“ This Government continuously claims that PPP will solve social housing and social problems. Just look at their track record with these projects, budgets run over by millions and years. We hear officials talking about PPP as the rescue remedy for Limerick’s social problems but the reality for the people of Limerick’s estates is that after 10 years they could end up like St Michael’s estate, with nothing but a councillors junket and a new Task Forces. None of the promised homes, playgrounds, youth cafes, community centre, sports grounds, education or employment schemes. We can’t sit back and pretend that PPP works for social housing”.

St Michael’s Estate Regeneration Team, made up of residents and local community groups work with and on behalf of the residents. For more information see www.stmichaelsestate.ie

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/66997
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/89384
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