COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, March 09, 2026

QUESTION NO. 9

QUESTION: Councillor H. Farrell

To ask the Chief Executive if the number of ground floor vacant retail units in the county is known or collated?

REPLY:

South Dublin County Council does not currently maintain a consolidated record of ground floor vacant retail units in the county. Since the discontinuation of commercial rates refunds for vacant premises in 2025, the Council no longer receives the administrative notifications that previously enabled vacancy tracking. 

Notwithstanding the absence of a formal vacancy dataset, the Council continues to advance measures that support the vitality of local retail centres. The SDCC Economic Strategy outlines a commitment to strengthening the county’s retail offering, including enhancing major retail centres, supporting business growth, and improving the overall attractiveness and functionality of commercial areas. These strategic objectives guide ongoing work to monitor the health of retail environments and promote sustainable occupancy.  

In addition to this, the Council has recently published its Tallaght Evening Time Economy Plan, which has a series of initiatives to address retail unit vacancy within Tallaght town centre. At the time of preparing the Tallaght Evening Time Economy Plan, there were a total of 18 vacant retail units within the town centre and in response to this, the strategy outlines a series of priority actions including proactively working with property owners to address commercial vacancy, as well as creating an evening time economy grant support scheme for businesses, which seeks to support the introduction of new hospitality and evening time economy uses in vacant commercial units. In delivering the Tallaght Evening Time Economy Plan, it’s impact on addressing ground floor commercial units' vacancy levels will be monitored, with the potential for any successful initiatives derived from its implementation to be rolled out on a phased basis across the county.  

Allied to the objectives of SDCC’s Economic Strategy and the Tallaght Evening Time Economy Plan, the Council also operates a business support fund, which seeks to support local businesses and address the issue of vacancy in industrial areas, with 22 projects supported by SDCC under this initiative in 2025. A core objective of the business support fund aims to address areas experiencing high levels of obsolescence, dereliction, vacancy, and abandonment. One of the funds is specifically aimed at supporting existing small-scale businesses and start-up businesses utilising previously vacant units. In 2026, the Economic Development Strategic Policy Committee will explore the potential for the business support fund to be expanded to help address vacancy in ground floor commercial units as part of the implementation of the Tallaght Evening Time Economy Plan.  

Complementing these measures which currently support addressing commercial unit vacancy in the county, the Council also operates the Shopfront Grant Scheme, which provides financial assistance to independently owned businesses seeking to improve their shopfronts. The scheme funds up to 50% of eligible works, helping maintain high-quality, visually appealing streetscapes and supporting the broader goals of local economic resilience.  

Further information on the Shopfront Grant Scheme is available at: 
https://www.sdcc.ie/en/services/business/shop-front-improvement-grant/ 

In looking to the future, the Council will further explore different measures available to assist in addressing commercial vacancy levels within the county, engaging with South Dublin Chamber and working with the Economic Development SPC as part of this process.