Owners of larger houses 'not getting enough' under pyrite scheme 

A Defective Concrete Block Community Facilitator for Mayo has told councillors in the Ballina Municipal District she is concerned owners of larger homes will not be able to avail of sufficient grant aid to rebuild their homes.

Caroline Wilson, from Mayo North East, gave a presentation to councillors at last week’s area meeting where she highlighted the positive progress she and her colleague Máire Goggins have made in dealing with those affected by pyrite.

In response to a query from Cllr Mark Duffy, Ms Wilson said most people are finding the money allocated through grants is sufficient to rebuild their homes and find alternative accommodation.

In addition to the grant for actual construction works, homeowners may also be eligible, within the overall grant cap for an ancillary grant of up to €25,000 for alternative accommodation and storage costs and the cost of immediate repair work. The maximum grant is €420,000, including the ancillary grant.

“Most people are finding they will build their house. You get so much up to 180 metres squared and you should be able to get windows with that as a like-for-like rebuild. They may not be double glazed but they will be part of the finish,” said Ms Wilson.

“Then there are some people with bigger houses, those up on 2,500 to 3,000 square foot houses. They are the ones finding it really difficult because they will not qualify for the accommodation up to €25,000 extra.

“A lot of people are happy but those with large houses are not getting enough.”

The councillors praised Ms Wilson and her colleague for the work they have done for those affected by the issue of defective blocks.

Ms Wilson told the meeting she feels she has a lot of empathy for those impacted as she went through a similar journey lasting 17 years to rebuild her house after the walls began to crack in 2007.