People Before Profit Alliance (Dublin Central) » Development

Housing Regeneration: Ten Years and still waiting…

pbpdubcentral — Wed, 27 May 2009 15:58:10 +0000

Read leaflet here:

Colm Stephens at Tenants First Protest

pbpdubcentral — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:01:22 +0000

Click on link below to view interview with Colm Stephens, People Before Profit Local Election Candidate in North Inner City at recent protest over regeneration projects in Dublin City.

Colm Stephens says why he supports the Residents of St Michael’s Estate

from Paula Geraghty on Vimeo.

Support Maura Harrington

pbpdubcentral — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 10:53:30 +0000

Maura Harrington, a prominent political activist associated with the Shell to Sea campaign has been jailed for 28 days in relation to an incident which occurred when Gardaí and Shell used a digger to force their way onto property against the wishes of the landowner in order to facilitate the laying of a portacabin.

Colm Stephens (People Before Profit) joins family & supporters of Maura Harrington outside Mountjoy Prison

There has been an ongoing protest outside the jail for the past week or so. Please send a cards, letters, messages of support to :
Maura Harringon,
Dochas Centre,
Mountjoy Gaol,
North Circular Road,
Dublin 7,
Ireland.

www.shelltosea.com

For more photographs of recent protest at Mountjoy prison click here

Collapse of Croke Villas Regeneration Exposes craziness of reliance on private developers

pbpdubcentral — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 20:25:23 +0000

People Before Profit Alliance local election candidate in the North Inner City area, Colm Stephens expressed his shock at the announcement on 10 December that Dublin City Council’s plans to regenerate Croke Villas using a ‘Public Private Partnership’ (PPP) scheme have collapsed. According to the City Council it has not been possible to negotiate a deal with the developer (Bennett Developments) because of the ‘economic climate and global credit crunch’.
He commented that “Because the developer cannot be guaranteed a profit from the sale of the private part of the development, the whole plan collapses and nothing gets built” and added that “We shouldn’t forget that developer has numerous state contracts including a €55 million project for new government offices in Trim, Co. Meath. The company made a profit of €4.5 million in 2007 but only paid a measly €2,642 in tax! And that was after it paid the directors over €5.8 million in ‘emoluments’!” *
The People Before Profit Alliance believes that it demonstrates the craziness of depending on millionaire private developers to provide public services. Colm Stephens commented that “There is no sign of the millionaires in Bennett Developments showing any solidarity to the taxpayer who gave them massive contracts – so much for their ‘patriotic duty’!”

Colm Stephens added that “After ten year’s wait for regeneration the people of Croke Villas need action and need it fast. It is not yet clear what the Council intends to do but the plans it has announced for the other estates where PPP schemes have also collapsed mean that the Council will build only the minimum amount of social housing. These houses and flats won’t even be completed until 2015! The Council also plans to sell off the bulk of the three other sites to private developers to build shops and private houses in the future.”

He believes strongly that the Council itself should urgently regenerate the whole of the Croke Villas site for social housing and said “It is clear that the people cannot wait around for 10 more years for another millionaire developer to come along when he believes that he can make a profit on the backs of the people.”

Related news:

Click here to watch Vincent Browne discuss PPP issue with Rita Fagan (St Michael’s Estate, Inchicore) & others

Another PPP project collapses…

pbpdubcentral — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 21:35:00 +0000

Dublin City Council today announced that another regeneration project will not go ahead. Croke Villas, beside Croke Park in the north inner city, was to provide 30 social housing units as part of a public-private partnership (PPP).

But as was the case with O’Devaney Gardens, Dominick St and St Michael’s Estate, the private developer has pulled out of the plan. There are also fears for the future of another scheme in the south city at Bridgefoot Street.

New Plans for O’Devaney Gardens Unveiled

pbpdubcentral — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 23:37:59 +0000

A Public Information Meeting in relation to the Regeneration of the O’Devaney Gardens Flats Complex was held in the Aughrim Street Community Centre on Monday 8th December.

Speaking at the meeting Colm Stephens (People Before Profit Alliance Representative Dublin Central) highlighted some conerns with the plans:

Despite assurances by the council, there is a lack of proper control of the project by te council, as all phases after the intial phase 1 is completed, rely on a monies from commercial property developed on the site, which like the PPP proposal may fall through.
Less than half of the build will involve social/affordable housing
Despite the litany of promises and delays, the development won’t begin in earnest until at least 2010, with the first phase complete by 2012. This means a wait of 4 more years for residents.

The Government hopes that a strategy of cutbacks in the services we rely on – education, housing, health – will enable them to ride out the recession. But much of the wealth that was created during the boom has not disappeared – it has simply been pocketed by the super rich. Making the rich pay their fair share of tax will make it possible. The huge fight-back since the budget, from the residents, from the elderly and from teachers and students can force them to do it.

See the full plan for O’Devaney here

People Before Profit Alliance back residents call for recontruction of demolished building

pbpdubcentral — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:02:14 +0000

Dublin City Council are launching an investigation into an ‘incident’ that saw a 120-year-old Methodist church partially demolished without planning permission and despite workers on the site being served with an order from Dublin City Council to cease demolition immediately at Jones’s Road near Croke Park in the north inner city.

(Residents outside the Church in Protest Pic taken from Dublin People Newspaper)

Furious residents have already a organised a protest and there was a public meeting held on Thursday October 30th.

Speaking after the meeting local People Before Profit Alliance Representative, Colm Stephens backed calls from local residents for the church to be fully rebuild.

For further comment contact:

Colm Stephens 087 2947 100