COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, March 13, 2023

QUESTION NO.21

QUESTION: Councillor C. O'Connor

To ask the CEO to detail actions being taken to tackle the vacant sites and dereliction issue throughout the County and will he make a statement? 

REPLY:

Derelict Sites

In accordance with Section 3 of the Derelict Sites Act, l990a derelict site is defined as:

Any land which detracts, or is likely to detract, to a material degree from the amenity, character or appearance of land in the neighbourhood of the land in question because of –

(a) the existence on the land in question of structures which are in a ruinous, derelict or dangerous condition, or

(b) the neglected, unsightly or objectionable condition of the land or any structures on the land in question or,

(c) the presence, deposit or collection on the land in question of any litter, rubbish, debris or waste, except where the presence, deposit or collection of such litter, rubbish, debris or waste results from the exercise of a right conferred by statute or by common law.

In order to eliminate/abate dereliction the Council has and continues to rely on the following provisions of the Derelict Sites Act:

A Section 11 Notice is served where in the opinion of a local authority it is necessary to do so, in order to prevent land, situate in their functional area from becoming or continuing to be a derelict site,

A notice under this section becomes effective after the expiration of fourteen days from the date of service of the notice, and 

A Section 8(2) Notice is served by the Local Authority on the owner and occupier (where they can be ascertained by reasonable enquiry) before making any entry on the register in relation to any land advising of their intention to make such entry. The Local Authority shall consider any representations any owner or occupier may make in writing within such period as may be specified in the notice, and may either make the entry or not as they think proper having regard to such representations.

A Section 8 (7) Notice is served by the Local Authority on the owner and occupier of a site where there is failure by the owner / occupier to respond to a Section 8 (2) Notice and where the owner / occupier has failed to take steps to render the site non derelict, advising that an entry has been made in the register.

A Section 15 Notice is served by the Local Authority on the owner and occupier of a site where it is intended to compulsorily acquire a derelict site.

A Section 23 Notice is served by the Local Authority on the owner and occupier of a site in respect of a levy / charge on the site where a market value has been determined (in accordance with Section 22) and which stands entered on the register on the first day of January of that financial year, until the dereliction is abated

There are currently 10 derelict sites entered on the Register of Derelict Sites maintained by the Council pursuant to Section 8 (1) of the Derelict Sites Act 1990.

Vacant Sites:

Under the Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015, local authorities have to compile a register of lands in its area that are suitable for housing but are not coming forward for development. The registers were established on January 1st 2017 and the identified sites have been charged a vacant site levy from January 2019 onwards.  There are 5 sites remaining on the Vacant Sites Register, noting that a number of sites have been removed because they no longer meet the criteria. 

The vacant site register is publicly available at Vacant Sites - SDCC

The vacant sites levy will be replaced by the Residential Zoned Land Tax in 2024.  This tax differs from the current levy in that it will be collected by Revenue and not by the Local Authority.  As per the relevant legislation, that is the Taxes Consolidation Acts, a draft RZLT map was published by the Council in November 2022.  A total of 30 submissions were received and determinations will be made by the local authority on their inclusion or exclusion from the map.

The RZLT is a more comprehensive mechanism for the identification of zoned lands which could be made available for residential use. The tax, to commence in 2024, will be 3% of the value of the lands.  A final map identifying all of the lands which will become liable to the tax will be published in December of this year.