{"id":485389,"date":"2026-05-15T03:39:14","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T03:39:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/485389\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T03:39:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T03:39:14","slug":"reuse-of-vacant-buildings-could-meet-40-of-dublins-housing-targets-report-finds-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/485389\/","title":{"rendered":"Reuse of vacant buildings could meet 40% of Dublin\u2019s housing targets, report finds \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Up to 40 per cent of Dublin\u2019s<\/a> housing<\/a> targets could be met by reusing vacant commercial buildings and flats above shops for homes, according to a report commissioned by Dublin City Council<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Dublin\u2019s climate action targets will not be met if housing and commercial buildings are continually demolished rather than reused, says the report from environmental researchers at the Centre for Public Impact and TransCap Initiative.<\/p>\n

However, it found that the cost of refurbishing the city\u2019s empty building stock is high, with up to \u20ac2.86 billion required to bring vacant property back into use.<\/p>\n

The council in 2022 set up an \u201cadaptive reuse\u201d unit, to combat dereliction and provide homes through the reuse of vacant properties. Feasibility studies were prepared for 15 conversion projects and the first three properties were bought at a total cost of \u20ac6.35 million. However, the scheme has been radically curtailed, and just one project is proceeding: the adaptation of an office block at Fitzwilliam Quay in Ringsend.<\/p>\n

Up to 16,000 homes could be created from vacant commercial and above-the-shop space. \u201cThis would present an important contribution to [the council\u2019s] target of creating 40,000 new homes between 2022 and 2028,\u201d the report says.<\/p>\n

The Funding Architecture for the Circular Economy report notes it will be \u201cchallenging to meet housing targets and climate targets simultaneously\u201d.<\/p>\n

Adaptive reuse offers a means to \u201caccelerate housing delivery, reduce embodied carbon and address vacancy and dereliction\u201d, it says. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur research identified the reuse of existing buildings as the most immediately viable, under-resourced, and impactful route to advance circularity and progress towards [the council\u2019s] climate mitigation objectives through reducing embodied carbon.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, it says existing funding and financing arrangements are not aligned with these objectives. \u201cFragmented funding streams, restrictive eligibility criteria, and limited internal capacity within [the council] collectively inhibit project viability and delivery at scale.\u201d<\/p>\n

[\u00a0What is happening with the derelict Dublin cinema that has racked up \u20ac1m in fines?Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Funding for adaptive reuse was sourced through multiple national grant schemes, \u201ceach with its own eligibility rules, caps, timelines, and administrative burdens\u201d. These schemes are often \u201cpoorly suited to the complexity of older buildings, mixed-use developments or Dublin\u2019s higher construction costs\u201d.<\/p>\n

As a result, \u201cmany socially and environmentally valuable projects are financially unviable in practice\u201d.<\/p>\n

An analysis of renovation costs indicated a total estimated funding need of \u20ac2.14-\u20ac2.86 billion to bring vacant buildings across the city into use for homes, the report says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe funding need for adaptive reuse is too significant to be covered by [the council\u2019s] current funding mechanisms alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report recommends redirecting public funding toward \u201ccircular\u201d or reuse initiatives (rather than demolition and rebuilding projects), reforming fragmented funding schemes and sourcing private and philanthropic capital to \u201cdesign systemic funding mechanisms attuned to the complexity of the challenge\u201d.<\/p>\n

The issuing of \u201clocal climate bonds\u201d, a type of community municipal investment, should also be considered.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0All 20 derelict properties highlighted by The Irish Times a year ago remain decrepitOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Council chief executive Richard Shakespeare<\/a> said the report presents \u201ca credible route for Dublin City Council to lead on circular, low\u2011carbon urban regeneration \u2013 demonstrating how housing delivery, climate action and place\u2011making can reinforce one another when approached systemically.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we move forward regenerating the city centre, we will need to work together to ensure that the financial investment is there for not only the bricks and mortar but for the social and cultural assets that guarantee our shared pride in our city\u2019s past, present and future.\u201d<\/p>\n

The conversion of vacant and derelict buildings into housing was one of the 10 recommendations of the Taoiseach\u2019s Dublin City Taskforce<\/a> report published in 2024. A council-owned company is to be established this year to lead city regeneration. Former secretary general of the Department of Health Robert Watt has been appointed to head to the new body.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Up to 40 per cent of Dublin\u2019s housing targets could be met by reusing vacant commercial buildings and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":485390,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[9,10,52,784,18,13,14,6,8752,19,17,11,12,15,16,5,148204,7,8],"class_list":{"0":"post-485389","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ireland","8":"tag-breaking-news","9":"tag-breakingnews","10":"tag-dublin","11":"tag-dublin-city-council","12":"tag-eire","13":"tag-featured-news","14":"tag-featurednews","15":"tag-headlines","16":"tag-housing-crisis","17":"tag-ie","18":"tag-ireland","19":"tag-latest-news","20":"tag-latestnews","21":"tag-main-news","22":"tag-mainnews","23":"tag-news","24":"tag-richard-shakespeare","25":"tag-top-stories","26":"tag-topstories"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116576515904264600","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=485389"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/485389\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/485390"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=485389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=485389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=485389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}