Stephen McDermott
BOARDED-UP HOUSES AND crumbling buildings are a common feature of towns and cities across Ireland.
Derelict buildings contribute significantly to Ireland’s housing crisis, and bringing them back into use is one of the government’s strategies for addressing social housing shortfalls and getting more homes on the market.
Last month, the compulsory purchase order (CPO) process was used via An Coimisiún Pleanála for three properties.
Under laws introduced in 1990, every local council keeps a Derelict Sites Register to encourage owners to bring vacant houses and land into use through the imposition of an annual levy of 7% of the property’s market value, which applies until the site is no longer derelict.
When someone objects to a local authority’s attempt to obtain a property via the CPO process, the council can apply to An Coimisiún Pleanála to do so.
The Housing Act also allows local authorities to acquire vacant homes via CPO, which they must also apply to do via the commission.
The process is similar to making a standard planning application, and the board weighs up submissions from the council and the owner of the land before deciding whether a site can be subject to a CPO.
The number of properties that councils try to CPO via the commission every month is relatively small.
It is worth noting, however, that Ireland’s councils successfully CPO other properties without having to go to the commission, which helps bring derelict properties back into use.
The Journal reported in March that local authorities acquired a total of 99 properties via Compulsory Purchase Orders last year.
We have also been keeping track of the vacant and derelict properties that councils have applied to the commission to acquire via CPO since April last year.
This list shows the total number of applications made to An Coimisiún Pleanála by councils to CPO derelict properties since our series began in 2025:
- April 2025: Six
- May 2025: Three
- June 2025: Two
- August 2025: Two
- September 2025: Five
- October 2025: Two
- November 2025: Three
- December 2025: One
- January 2026: One
- February 2026: Seven
- March 2026: Two
- April 2026: 13
In total, two councils applied to the commission in May to CPO three properties between them. Here they are:
Two properties at Kenlis Place, Kells (Meath)
On 8 May, Meath County Council applied to the commission to acquire a large property located at Kenlis Place in Kells.
The two-storey attached property consists of separate Eircodes (A82X3R8 and
A82A3Y) and was only listed on the council’s derelict sites register in January of this year.
No value has been put on the property by the council, and there is not much additional detail about the building online.
Meath County Council has identified Kenlis Place as part of an area it is trying to regenerate in order to create a more vibrant town centre in Kells that connects back to its historic core.
The case involving this specific property is due to be decided by the commission by 12 October.
Pound Street, Ballaghadereen (Roscommon)
On 13 May, Roscommon County Council applied to CPO a property at Pound Street in Ballaghadereen.
The property was first registered on the council’s derelict sites register on 31 July last year, though no value has been placed on it.
It is difficult to find much other information about the property online because entries on databases like Roscommon County Council’s website and the Property Price Register only contain the name of the street for properties on Pound Street.
The case is due to be decided by 3 September.
Tidy Terrace, St Patrick’s Street, Boyle (Roscommon)
Roscommon County Council also applied to the commission on 13 May to purchase a property at Tidy Terrace on St Patrick’s Street in Boyle.
The two-storey terraced property is situated in the middle of a terrace on a residential street in the town, and was first entered on the council’s register of derelict sites in March 2025.
There is no value given to the property or any other information about its ownership online.
The case is due to be decided by 3 September.