Main pic: The 13.89 acre site at Ballymacool where Donegal County Council plans to build 170 social houses.
Donegal County Council has received approval for almost €50 million in government funding to build 170 social houses in Letterkenny.
A plenary meeting of the council today heard the project, at a newly acquired site at Ballymacool, is one of the largest ever to be undertaken by the local authority.
John Gallagher, Senior Engineer, made the announcement to councilors this morning.
“We have received Stage 1 department approval for an overall development of 170 social houses at Ballymacool,” Mr Gallagher said.
“It has an approved preliminary budget of €49.3 million. This will be one of the largest, if not the largest, social housing project this council is undertaking. The initial phase will consist of 100 houses.”
The 13.89 acre site is one of two large plots acquired by the council in 2023. The other, at HighRoad (8.23 acres), has the potential to deliver another 175 units.
The Ballymacool site will see diggers on the ground sometime this year, with a target of 100 units completed by the end of 2026. The High Road project will be developed in phases, with the first phase delivering 30 units by the end of 2026.
Cllr Gerry McMonagle said the €50 million investment is ‘fantastic’ for Letterkenny, but stressed there must be a public consultation before works proceed.
“There are already 350 houses in that area and we’re going to build another 170, so we need to make sure the necessary infrastructure is in place first, along with the public consultation,” Cllr McMonagle said.
Mr Gallagher added that, currently, around 340 social houses are being built around the county.
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