Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage Deputy Peter Burke TD was today welcomed back to his home town by the Mullingar-Kinnegad Municipal District Mayor Cllr. Aoife Davitt and Tuath Vice-Chairman Paddy Gray to officially open 14 new homes at Farran Row, Mullingar.
The Farran Row estate is one of a number of visits that Minister Burke has made to developments in his home county this summer, including officially opening another 12 Tuath homes at Rochfortbridge in June.
Farran Row is a Tuath Housing Direct Build project consisting of 14 new homes that have been allocated to families on the Westmeath County Council housing waiting list. The development consists of four 2-bed bungalows, funded through the Department of Housing’s CAS grant scheme, and five 3-bed and, five 2-bed semi-detached houses, funded via private finance from the Housing Finance Agency and a loan from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The new homes are situated within a pre-existing Westmeath County Council residential estate and are a 15-minute walking distance from Mullingar town centre. The land was provided by Westmeath County Council under the low-cost sites scheme with building contractors, TH Contractors Ltd. The average price of a home in the Farran Row development was €195,000, representing excellent value for money.
Minister of State Peter Burke commented “I am delighted to officially launch 14 new homes for 14 local families here in my hometown of Mullingar. It is great to see Westmeath County Council and Tuath working collaboratively to provide a new start for families in our local community. These houses are finished to a very high standard and close to all local amenities, with great use being made of a small greenfield site within the existing residential area. I am delighted to meet some of the new tenants here today and I wish him the very best as they embark on an exciting new chapter”.
Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council Frankie Keena said “Westmeath County Council is delighted to work with Tuath Housing in the delivery of this new social housing development at Farran, Mullingar on lands provided by the Local Authority. Tuath is an important partner for the Council in the delivery of social housing throughout the County with a number of developments such as this already completed and a number in the pipeline for future years.”
Speaking at the official opening, Tuath Vice-Chairman Paddy Gray noted the strong partnership that exists between Tuath Housing and Westmeath County Council “We are humbled to be here in Westmeath once again for the opening of a further 14 homes for the people of Westmeath. The strong links that Tuath maintain with Westmeath County Council are important in providing more homes in the County. I would like to thank the Department of Housing, the Housing Finance Agency and our developer and contractor partners who support this partnership with their full backing, experience and expertise. I wish all the new residents at Farran Row every health and happiness in their new community”.
Barry O’Leary, CEO of the Housing Finance Agency said “The HFA is delighted to support this new development which will provide much needed two- and three-bedroom homes for families in Mullingar. We will continue to provide competitively priced long term fixed rate finance to Tuath, and others in the sector, to support the strong delivery of social and affordable homes across the country.”
Tuath already manage 190 homes throughout the county with a further 50 homes on site. The Association currently have over 7,400 homes in management nationwide, with a strong pipeline in place and are on course to deliver 1,800 homes in 2021.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
About Tuath:
Tuath Housing is a not-for-profit approved housing body, providing long-term, safe, quality housing. The organisation currently has over 7,400 homes under management and are active in every county throughout Ireland. www.tuathhousing.ie
For further information on this and other schemes and for high-resolution images please contact:
Fiona Egan f.egan@tuathhousing.ie