At the Big Debate of the Open House architectural festival on Friday night, Francis Doherty, director of housing development at the Peter McVerry Trust, stated that there are roughly 24 vacant homes for every homeless household in Ireland. His calculations were based on the 2022 census, which listed 166,752 unoccupied homes and apartments along with an estimated 7,000 homeless households.
Speaking on how the Peter McVerry Trust started renovating abandoned structures in towns and cities all throughout Ireland in 2013, Doherty asserted that this debunking of the urban legend that it is improper to convert historic structures into housing for the homeless dispels.
There is no structure that cannot be modified. Eighty-five percent of the social housing we offer to homeless individuals is located on rehabilitated brown field lands, which benefits our clients by putting them near amenities, according to Doherty. Former convents, monasteries, taverns, hair salons, grain stores, and pubs are just a few of the properties that the organisation has turned into housing.
According to architect Valerie Mulvin, a greater range of older structures need to be listed, safeguarded, and creatively adapted to preserve our urban landscapes.
Modern standards don't always work on older structures, therefore we also need more flexible regulation, notably in the area of fire rules, added Mulvin. She asserted that one-stop shops, like those offered by German local governments, would make the repair of old structures much simpler. As a way to compel the reuse of abandoned buildings, the establishment of mandatory management orders similar to those in the UK was also proposed.
The audience in Dublin's Science Gallery also learned how large build-to-rent developments are driving artists and community organisations out of the city. "I recently learned that a kickboxing training facility in Cabra has been forced to close due to a build-to-rent development. The city is filled with incidents of this nature. Laoise Neylon, a panellist at the discussion, argued that these public spaces should be regarded as having the same importance as a hospital.
Several panellists criticised the growth of new hotels and build-to-rent homes that are primarily studio or one-bedroom flats. According to Ms. Mulvin, "the city needs to be full of people who can live with their entire family for the duration of their entire lives."
Roisin Murphy, an architect, who presided over the panel discussion, suggested that architects join the "no build" movement to encourage the reuse of abandoned and unused buildings in a climate crisis rather than generating additional carbon through the construction of new structures.
"The argument used to be that it would be cheaper to tear it down, but with the rising cost of construction, that is no longer true. To deter developers from hoarding and land-banking, we must give councils more authority, the speaker stated.
Other speakers demanded a referendum on the right to housing and a prohibition on evictions. A working committee of the Housing Commission is now debating the proper wording for such a vote.
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