Case Studies   Urban Regeneration in the City of Dublin: Partnership structures and integrated area planning

Funding

Key government departments have played a major role in funding flagship redevelopment projects. For example, in the Liberties-Coombe area, funding for the Digital Hub Project comes from Government departments – the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. Funding for the Capital projects for the Regeneration of Fatima Mansions comes from the Department of the Environment and Local Government. Funding for the Temple Bar regeneration, one of the first to be carried out in the city, came primarily from central government and European Union funds.

Dublin City Council’s budget comes from a central government grant in addition to rates that are applied to commercial enterprises based in the city. Much of the funding for infrastructural projects has been channelled through the National Development Plan, a programme for economic and social development developed by the Government and being implemented over a specified time frame. Additional funding has been sourced through the community gain clause, which requires developers to pay a levy for every private residential unit built in the city. This levy can then be used to build or purchase housing for local authority tenants and/or to build and equip community centres. The City Council is very interested in exploring ideas such as the Jury system in the Wrangliez neighbourhood of Berlin for the allocation of monies under the community gain scheme. The City Council also benefits from the 20 per cent affordable housing clause, which initially required all developers to set aside 20 per cent of new housing built for social housing tenants. This policy has been challenged through court action, and has been diluted somewhat so that the developer can substitute the 20 per cent clause with the donation of a cash sum or a piece of land or housing units elsewhere. As the economy slows down, it is possible that this requirement will be eased as developers become more reluctant to enter a more risky housing market.

A key element of Dublin’s urban regeneration was the tax incentives schemes which made generous provision for developers willing to develop derelict sites. These tax incentives will cease in 2004, and Dublin City Council is actively seeking guidance from ENTRUST partners as to how to manage regeneration in the absence of the tax incentive scheme.

Monitoring and Evaluation    Anchoring and mainstreaming