Local Authority News Vol 35 No 2

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LAN LOCAL AUTHORITY NEWS

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Social Housing brochure available on request

“A W SOCI AL H arm O &C omf USING or ta ble Ho

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Green Housing Forum sponsored by Daikin, are Bro chu re hosting an event, Cost Effective Heating for Social Housing, for Architects, Co. Councils, and Consulting Engineers April 20th 2016.

To o exp xpress ess interest i est please Email: heating@dai he ting@daikin.ie in.ie or call Ian Killoch illoch 086-4679118

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CONTENTS VOL. 35 No 2

FEATURES DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL, CIVIC OFFICES ACHIEVES ISO 50001 CERTIFICATION Published by:

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DAIKIN AFFORDABLE WARMTH STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL HOMES 7

GILTRON LTD RIVERVIEW LODGE, DUBLIN ROAD, NAVAN, CO. MEATH.

MINISTERS KELLY & COFFEY ANNOUNCE 56.25 MILLION EURO TO IMPROVE THE HOMES OF OLDER PEOPLE AND PEOPLE WITH A 9 DISABILITY

Tel: 00353 46 9072841 Email: info@localauthoritynews.ie Website: www.localauthoritynews.ie

Designed & produced by Donnelly Design & Print Ltd. Tel: 046 - 9091891

2015 SOCIAL HOUSING REPORT OUTLINING KEY PRIORITIES FOR 11 2016 ERSI FROM ONE SMALL SEED

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ISSN NO. 1393-0394 LAN is available FREE OF CHARGE to all Local and Central Government Bodies throughout Ireland.

Published bi-monthly it is disseminated to Local Authority Managers, Assistant Managers, County Secretaries, Finance Officers, Principal Officers, Department Heads, County Engineers, City Engineers, Chief Quantity Surveyors, Senior Architects, Plant Superintendents, Senior Executive Engineers, Town Clerks, Purchasing Officers, Administrative Officers, Inspectors, Park Superintendents, County Librarians, etc. in all Government Departments, County Councils, Corporations, Office of Public Works, Urban District Councils, StateSponsored and Development Bodies and Agencies.

NEW EI ELECTRONICS 160E SERIES: THE NEXT STEP IN ALARM 17 EVOLUTION MINISTER ALAN KELLY LAUNCHES NATIONAL ROLL OUT OF SMART TECHNOLOGY ENERGY SAVING SCHEME FROM CLIMOTE & ELECTRIC IRELAND 19 NEW LOOK DONEGAL TRAFFIC WARDENS ON CAMERA

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REGULARS DEPARTMENT BREIFS

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CLASSIFIEDS

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Dublin City Council, Civic Offices achieves ISO 50001 Certification Civic Office Dublin City Council Civic Offices on Wood Quay have become the first Local Authority building to achieve the ISO 50001 Energy Management System accreditation. ISO 50001accreditation is a mark of excellence designed to establish and maintain a continuous standard of energy reduction. Alan Hester, Energy Manager, said this prestigious award was achieved through the constant improvement of energy consumption in the civic offices over the last three years.

Energy Management Systems provide a framework to: ➢ Develop a policy for more efficient use of energy ➢ Ensure compliance with legislation and best practice guides ➢ Use data to better understand and make decisions about energy use ➢ Fix targets and objectives to meet the policy ➢ Measure the results (left to right) Michael Brophy, CEO, Certification Europe.

Vincent Norton, Executive Manager, DCC. Alan Hester, Energy Manager, DCC.

➢ Continually improve energy management.

Historical Benchmark of electrical consumption, 2012 & 2015

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HQ Electrical are leading suppliers of quality electrical products which include top brands

Helping reduce your energy costs Continued success to Dublin City Council

CONGRATULATIONS TO DCC ON THE ISO 50001 ENERGY AWARD

Unit 15 -17 Rathfarnham Road, Terenure, Dublin 6W Phone: 01406 9454 Email: info@advancedair.ie Web: www.advancedair.ie

HQ Electrical Wholesale Ltd. Unit 15 Seatown Business Campus, Seatown Road, Swords, Co. Dublin.

Tel: 01 8409354 Fax: 01 8409353 Email: sales@hqe.ie.

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Energy Baseline The baseline year for ISO certification is from January to December 2012. The consumption figures for the baseline year were 5,223,289 kWh electrical and 3,549,755kWh natural gas. The consumption figures for 2015 were 4,186,298 kWh electrical and 2,696,326 kWh natural gas. Cumulative savings, measured against the baseline now total 2,333,677 kWh electrical and 1,908,003 kWh natural gas. This has provided a saving of approximately â‚Ź380,000

Photo by Tony Barrett

NEEAP Under the European Energy Efficiency Directive, and the Irish National Energy Efficiency Action Plan, the public sector must deliver energy efficiency savings of 33% by 2020. Dublin City Council is therefore obliged by regulation to reduce energy in any buildings where they are responsible for energy use. The 33% reduction target is based on the average primary energy use between the years 2006 and 2008. The Civic Office has achieved the 33% target, five years ahead of the schedule date of 2020.

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Ireland's leading name within the specialist lift industry with a strong reputation for customer care and quality of our service.

With an ever-increasing awareness of public access issues Barron Lifts Ireland Limited recognise that access problems are unique and are committed to improving accessibility for all by providing custom built solutions.

Templenacroha, Clonroche, Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford.

Tel: 051 420575 Email: info@barronlifts.ie Website: www.barronlifts.ie

Positive Coverage of Positive Achievements

GILTRON LTD Tel/Fax: 00 353 46 9072841 Email: carmel@giltron.ie

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Ministers Kelly & Coffey Announce 56.25 Million euro to Improve the Homes of Older People and People with a Disability inister for the Environment, Community & Local Government, Alan Kelly TD and Minister of State for Housing & Planning, Paudie Coffey TD have announced that 56.25 million euro will be made available in 2016 for Housing Adaptations for Older People and People with a Disability living in private houses. This investment will allow extensions to be built for people with a disability as well as housing adaptations to improve mobility aid (such as stair lifts, access ramps, etc.).

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The funding being announced by the Ministers for 2016 represents an increase of 5.75 million euro on the funding allocated for 2015. Every local authority will be getting more funding allocated for housing adaptation grants in 2016 than they actually spent in 2015. By making the allocation in February, local authorities will be in a better position to maximize their spend on these works which will help more elderly and vulnerable people.

The grants are 80% funded from the exchequer by the Department of Environment, Community & Local Government, with 20% funding from the relevant local authority. Grants are payable in the main to owner-occupied (private) housing, and also eligible are houses being purchased under the tenant purchase scheme, private rented accommodation, accommodation provided under voluntary housing schemes and accommodation occupied by persons living in communal residences. Grants of up to 30,000 euro are available for an adaptation, up to 8,000 euro for housing aid for older people and up to 6,000 euro for mobility aids.

Minister Kelly stated: “These grants provide older people and people with a disability the opportunity to continue independent living in their own homes for as long as possible, with the comfort and dignity that they deserve. I am particularly pleased that we have made available a significant increase in funding for 2016 for this important programme. The grants that are made available, whether large or small, can greatly improve the quality of life of people with a disability or who are reaching an age in life when they are less mobile”.

Minister Coffey added “This funding is part of a huge Government commitment to housing and it provides significant social benefit by facilitating citizens to continue the independent occupancy of their own homes. The funding will allow local authorities increase the number of citizens they can support through this programme and, in addition, it will provide a boost to the construction sector nationally, with the benefits being spread to local economies across the country”.

2016 Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability Allocations http://www.environ.ie/housing/grantsfinancial-assistance/housing-adaptation-grants-2016

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2015 Social Housing Report Outlining Key Priorities For 2016 • 3,000 new units across all schemes.

• 2,000 people exited homelessness.

• 420 additional housing staff employed.

• 5,000 new units under construction rising to 10,000 per year.

The Department of Environment, Community and Local Government in collaboration with the Housing Agency, have published the Social Housing Output in 2015 Report. This is the first annual output report on the Governmentʼs ambitious programme of social housing delivery, under the Social Housing Strategy 2020.

The Social Housing Strategy 2020 (November 2014) sets out clear, measureable actions to increase the supply of social housing, reform delivery arrangements and meet the housing needs of all 90,000 households on the social housing list, with flexibility to meet future demand. The Strategy has been supported by two successive budgets with €1.7 billion allocated to housing in 2015 and 2016. Given the pressing need to recommence a house building programme almost €3 billion in capital funding will be provided in support of the Strategy under the Governmentʼs Capital Plan - Building on Recovery: Infrastructure and Capital Investment 2016-2021.

Amongst the many achievements in 2015 detailed in the report are: Over 13,000 new social housing units/sets of keys were delivered in 2015, an 86% increase in unit delivery above 2014.

Exchequer Funding for Social Housing in 2015 was 800 million euro, an increase of €210 million on 2014.

420 staff were recruited by local authorities to deliver more social housing units as quickly as possible, 2,700 vacant social housing units were brought back into use through an intensive programme of works funded by the Exchequer. Vacancy rates have fallen significantly and are now down as low as 1% in Dublin City.

Funding has been approved and sites selected for the construction of over 5,000 new social housing units.

Over 1,000 properties were acquired by local authorities for social housing use in 2015.

Approval of the first 500 units of a new PPP programme which will deliver over 1500 units was announced in 2015 8,953 social housing units were delivered through social housing leasing, the RAS scheme and the HAP scheme. The HAP scheme is now operational in 18 local authorities.

NAMA has delivered 2,000 units by end 2015 for social housing through the special purpose vehicle called NARPS (National Asset Residential Property Services Ltd).

NAMA has invested 150m euro to date in acquiring these units - in addition to investing around 70m euro remediating and completing properties, many of which were unfinished housing developments.

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In 2015, over 4 million euro capital funding was provided to local authorities for Traveller specific accommodation, which will rise to 5.5 million euro in 2016.

progress to be made. However, the delivery of housing services will be transformed in the coming years, benefitting from streamlined project approvals, new ways of funding social housing and capacity building at local authority and approved housing bodies level.”

In 2015 Exchequer funding for homeless services was 64.77 million euro, a 32% increase on the amount provided in 2014.

The Minister said that his main aim is to do this “while maintaining the focus on delivering the best outcomes for those in need of State support in meeting their housing need, while at same time offering the best value for money for the taxpayer.”

At the end of Quarter 3 a total of 1,645 homeless individuals had transitioned to independent tenancies nationally. This compares with 1,491 for the same period in 2014 - a 10% increase in exits from homelessness.

The numbers sleeping rough in Dublin at end November 2015 had fallen by 46% since the year previous.

The rent threshold limits of the Homeless HAP Pilot Scheme in Dublin were increased to 50% above rent supplement limits in 2015. This means a homeless family in Dublin in need of a 3-bed can now access privately rented housing at rates up to 1500 euro per month.

Under a Ministerial direction, Dublin Region authorities must allocate at least 50% of tenancies to homeless and other vulnerable households. The authorities in counties Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford have been directed to allocate 30%.

Details collated in relation to the operation of the Direction over a nine-month period (February to October) confirm that a total of 612 local authority units had been allocated specifically to homeless households in the relevant local authorities.

The main focus of the report is the progress made to date in delivering on the Social Housing Strategyʼs ambitious targets, to provide 110,000 homes for those on the social housing waiting list by 2020. To that end, the Ministers are also announcing the approval of a funding for a further 1,000 new social housing units.

This brings the total social housing projects approved since the Strategyʼs launch to 200, which will deliver 5,350 homes, in the coming years.

Speaking at report launch, Minister Kelly commended local authorities, approved housing bodies, the NGOs involved in the provision of homelessness services, and all stakeholders for the very good start made in 2015.

“This is still just the beginning and there is much

Further priorities for 2016 include: Increase social housing further from the 13,000 this year to 17,000 in 2016; Ensure that real progress is made on the 5,000 home build programme; Build the capacity of local authority construction to be able to build 10,000 homes per year by 2020; Roll out the very successful Housing Assistance Programme to more local authority areas; Launch a pilot Affordable Rental Scheme for people on low incomes; Improve the service to those on the waiting list and reduce refusal rates by introducing Choice Based Letting allocations in all local authorities; Deliver 500 rapid housing solutions to significantly improve on emergency accommodation and decrease the reliance on hotel accommodations.

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From one small seed How Waterford City and County Council is cultivating its use of GIS technology to deliver better public services, more cost effectively When Waterford City and County Council was formed two years ago from the amalgamation of the former separate city and county councils, a geographic information system (GIS) was planted at the heart of the new organisation, as part of a suite of integrated information technologies, including Microsoft SharePoint. The GIS technology was used to create a single source of the truth by consolidating multiple sets of geospatial data in the newly amalgamated and centralised IT department. However, that’s not where GIS has remained. From this initial seed, GIS has quickly sprouted out into a range of different applications and spread throughout the organisation, delivering tremendous operational advantages along the way.

Today, almost every department in Waterford City and County Council not only has access to intranet-based mapping, but has its own custom GIS applications that support specific workflows. The council’s GIS team has used Esri’s ArcGIS platform to quickly and easily create over a dozen different map viewers, each one of which presents teams with precisely the data and tools they need to perform their roles efficiently. Planning staff can, for instance, make faster, informed decisions about whether or not to grant planning permissions, based on easy access to accurate and complete information covering the entire county.

Waterford City and County Council has also extended GIS out to citizens with the creation of eight interactive web maps, published on its website, that give members of the public improved access to information on topics as varied as administrative boundaries, winter gritting schedules and the progress of the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Furthermore, the council has taken advantage of Esri’s story map templates to create highly engaging apps that encourage people to visit attractions and businesses in the ‘Viking Triangle’ region and provide a boost for the local economy.

A story map helps to attract visitors to Waterford

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In another initiative, Waterford Council has taken GIS out to field-based teams, saving them valuable time and money. It has, for instance, used ArcGIS to create a mobile data collection app for its environment department that allows teams to collect information about litter types and quantities, using smartphones and tablets, and upload that data directly from the field. The council estimates that this particular use of GIS has led to an 80% reduction in the time required to complete annual statutory litter surveys for Ireland’s Department of Environment, Community and Local Government.

To extend the reach of GIS even further within the organisation, Waterford City and County Council is now beginning to develop its use of ArcGIS in association with its customer relationship management (CRM) system. CRM data on the locations and types of issues reported by citizens will be fed into ArcGIS and presented in a highly visual way on maps, making it easier for managers to identify patterns and prioritise areas for intervention. Waterford City and County Council anticipates that this new use of ArcGIS will help it to not only improve its responsiveness to public concerns but also plan works more strategically to deliver better quality services.

GIS now touches teams in every department of Waterford City and County Council, as well as members of the public and field-based workers – yet they are not all dependant on one generic council-wide GIS facility. Using standard, out-of-the-box functionality in the ArcGIS platform, Waterford City and County Council has been able to develop discrete, tailored GIS solutions that precisely meet the needs of specific teams and particular tasks.

“ArcGIS enables us to deliver and configure more solutions with less resources and in very little time to meet the needs of our newly formed council and the citizens we serve,” says Jon Hawkins, GIS projects manager at Waterford City and County Council.

One thing is certain: the use of GIS will continue to flourish and reach out into new operational areas of the council over time. From its original investment in Esri’s ArcGIS platform, Waterford City and County Council has all the technology and tools to be creative and develop new apps that meet the needs of employees and citizens alike. “Whatever is required in the future, ArcGIS is flexible enough to enable us to build a solution,” Hawkins says. “As we grow, GIS will grow with us.”

Interested to know more contact: mapsmakesense@esri-ireland.ie

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New EI Electronics 160e Series: The Next Step In Alarm Evolution Ei Electronics market leader in domestic mains powered Fire and Carbon Monoxide (CO) detection, unveils the latest in Smoke and Heat Alarm technology with its new 160e Series.

With over €350 million of the 160 Series alarms sold to date, the new 160e Series builds on this high quality, reliable and proven technology to produce a cleaner, modern designed alarm containing a whole raft of enhancements to increase protection and performance.

The alarms have been completely redesigned to lend themselves to suiting most modern properties and to complement the latest Ei Electronic accessories. The new 160e design is up to 18% slimmer when compared to the previous 160RC Series alarms allowing them to be less obtrusive in the room, whilst maintaining the same easi-fit footprint making it simple to upgrade from previous EI alarms.

The units have been made all the easier to install. Additional screw holes have been incorporated into the base to save on installation times with all hole positions matching previous alarm bases, removing the need to drill extra holes. The holes themselves have been adapted to enable N° 8 Screws to be used and bigger terminals have been incorporated to readily accommodate 1.5mm² cable, making it easier to wire. ʻOʼ for Optical and ʻIʼ for Ionisation have been imprinted on the alarm test buttons and colour coding added to the back of every alarm to make it easier to check the right alarm type is being fitted.

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Components within the alarms provide improved performance in response time and resistance to false alarms.

The Ei164e Heat Alarm has a new thermistor giving a faster alarm response when the trigger temperature is reached. The Ei166e Optical Alarm has a new cylindrical sensor chamber encapsulated by a bonded protective mesh to keep out potential contaminates such as dust and insects whilst still allowing the free flow of smoke.

With Ei始s award winning RadioLINK wireless alarm interconnection, a firm favourite of both installers and landlords, the 160e Series of alarms now comes with a plug in RadioLINK+ module negating the need for a separate RadioLINK base. The Ei100MRF RadioLINK+ module simply slots into the alarm and is automatically activated ready to be House Coded in with the rest of the system. Such a design saves on installation time and reduces associated costs.

With the introduction of the RadioLINK+ module, the House Coding slot has now been moved onto the actual alarm making it easy to access and use and, most importantly, enabling all the alarms to be House Coded in situ. This not only makes for quicker installation, but also allows the installer to check RF signal strength at the exact location the alarms will be when protecting the occupants and dwelling.

RadioLINK+ has also made it easier to expand existing systems. With RadioLINK+ only one alarm in the existing system needs putting into Remote House Code mode, which signals to all other devices on the house coded system that a new alarm/accessory needs adding, as opposed to all the alarms.

RadioLINK+ has an enhanced self-monitoring function that recognises system tampering or alarm head removal. Each alarm in the system has the ability to identify the alarm with the strongest Radio Frequency (RF) signal and automatically pair with it. At regular intervals, these paired alarms communicate with each other so that if one alarm is removed from its base the other will acknowledge the lack of response with an indicator light and log this in its memory, even if the missing alarm is replaced. It can also send an 驶Alarm Removed始 signal when connected to an Ei414 Fire/CO Alarm Interface and third party device e.g. Warden Call or other monitoring systems.

Designed to provide flexible solutions, delivering the highest quality protection for BS 5839-6 Grade D applications, the new 160e Series includes Optical, Heat and Ionisation Alarm models. These mains powered alarms come with 10 year rechargeable Lithium cells to provide back-up in the event of a mains failure. 160e alarms are compatible with existing Ei alarms and accessories, enabling for full system upgrades or simple system expansion using the new models.

The original 160 Series, launched in 1999, has been installed into millions of properties across Ireland and UK. EI Electronics has invested considerably in the range over the years, with a number of key developments such as RadioLINK wireless alarm interconnection and remote control. The 160e is the next evolutionary step forward.

All alarms are designed and built in Ireland specifically to meet the European standards and regulations. With more mains powered domestic smoke alarms installed in Ireland and UK始s social housing than any other manufacturer, EI Electronics is tried, tested and trusted. Ei also offers technical support over the phone and an internal sales team to help with any enquiries.

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Minister Alan Kelly launches national roll out of Smart Technology Energy Saving Scheme from climote & Electric Ireland

Pictured: Paul Stapleton General Manager Electric Ireland, Brendan Cunningham Technical Manager Clúid, Alan Kelly T.D. Minister for the Environment, Eamon Conway Managing Director climote and Neil Bolton Property Services Director Clúid

inister Alan Kelly T.D., Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government has formally launched the national roll out of the Smart Technology Energy Saving Scheme. The national energy saving scheme will see 10,000 homes across Ireland fitted with a climote remote control heating system to enable families take full control of the energy used in their homes.

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Delivered by home technology company climote, and funded by Electric Ireland, the Smart Technology Energy Saving Scheme is a groundbreaking initiative which sees the collaboration of the public and private sectors in delivering an innovative energy efficient scheme based on the use of smart technology. climote beat off competition from a number of other international connected home technology companies to secure the deal which will be run in partnership with Irelandʼs largest energy supplier Electric Ireland. The scheme will see 10,000 homes fitted with a climote hub over the next twelve months.

At no cost to the exchequer or individual local authorities, 10,000 local authority and housing association homes will be fitted with a climote which will allow homeowners to control their heating timings and temperature via a smartphone, text message or online. This type of life changing technology has been proven to reduce energy consumption by an average of up to 20% every year.

Eamon Conway, Managing Director of climote said, “climote is delighted to announce the national roll out of this ground-breaking energy saving scheme in partnership with Electric Ireland, which will see 10,000 homes across Ireland fitted with climoteʼs remote control heating system. Working in partnership with Electric Ireland and the various housing agencies and local authorities allow climoteʼs smart technology enable homeowners to control their heating timings and temperature via their smartphone, text message or online. The real benefit for consumers and the Government is that the entire scheme is funded by industry.”

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“The roll out of the national energy saving scheme will be carried out by the nationwide team of approved climote installers who will install the 10,000 climote hubs in local authority and housing association homes this year. We have targeted local authority houses and housing associations so families can benefit from climoteʼs energy saving technology” continued Eamon Conway, Managing Director of climote.

Speaking on the Smart Technology Energy Saving Scheme roll out, Paul Stapleton, General Manager at Electric Ireland said, “At Electric Ireland we are all about Smarter Living, simple ideas that we believe will make our customers lives better.

We have worked with climote for a number of years and have received really positive feedback from our customers in terms of the level of control it offers them every day. climote is one of the range of smarter technologies that Electric Ireland is introducing to its 1.3 million customers around Ireland and we are delighted to be part of the roll out of this scheme.”

The Smart Technology Energy Saving Scheme was launched by Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly T.D. in the home of one of the early recipients Trish Foran in Ballygraigue Estate, Nenagh, Co Tipperary. Minister Kelly was joined by representatives from climote, Electric Ireland and Cluid Housing, the largest housing association in Ireland.

One of the first to get involved in the scheme was Cluid Housing and it is expected that thousands of families in every corner of Ireland will benefit from this free scheme. Brendan Cunningham, Technical Manager for Clúid Housing said, “climote will offer greater control of the heating systems to our tenants, through both mobile and digital access. The controls are extremely easy to use, thus encouraging people to adjust the heating without the fear of being overcome with technology. This has proven to reduce energy use within the home as it is only used when needed, hence reducing the overall cost to the tenant and giving them an affordable and sustainable place to live.”

A number of Local Authorities and housing associations including Laois County Council, Louth County Council, Kerry County Council, Galway County Council, Sligo County Council and Cluid Housing, have already agreed to participate in this free scheme and have their housing stock fitted with a climote as part of this Energy Saving Scheme. climote is the brainchild of ex-Honeywell executive Eamon Conway and home technology innovator Derek Roddy, who provide a wealth of knowledge and experience in the smart heating space. The duo have created a company focused on innovation in the areas of energy and home technology. The climote device enables users to control their home heating and adjust the temperature from anywhere in the world, using smart technology.

This national scheme of 10,000 homes further enhances climoteʼs reputation as a leader in the home technology and energy sector across Ireland and the UK. The fast growing company has already seen energy sector leaders such as John Mullins and Ian Marchant, ex CEOʼs of Bord Gáis and SSE respectively, join the advisory board and invest in climote, while the Dundalk headquartered firm won a global tender to offer their remote control heating system to Scottish Powerʼs 5.6m customers throughout the UK.

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New Look Donegal Traffic Wardens on camera onegal County Councilʼs traffic wardens stepped out in style with new uniforms including new state of the art personal CCTV cameras.

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Donegal County Council is among one of the first local authorities in Ireland to introduce personal CCTV cameras for Traffic Wardens and John McLaughlin, Director of Roads & Transportation explains “whilst this technology is widely used in other European countries including the UK, Donegal County Council is one of the first local authorities to introduce it here in Ireland”.

The overall aim of the personal CCTV camera is to provide for the personal safety of traffic wardens while they are doing their job.

As John McLaughlin explains “these devices will not be operating on a continuous basis, however, if a traffic warden finds him or herself in a situation that could result in some form of confrontation they can advise the other person or persons that they are turning on the device to record proceedings. Traffic wardens have been trained in using these devices and there are strict rules in place prohibiting the filming of children or minors.

“Most traffic wardens are working on their own and this device is about ensuring their personal safety while doing their job. We hope that it will not be needed too often but it is there as a safety precaution.

“Our research has shown that when the personal CCTV cameras are in place they are in fact a deterrent and have proved very effective in de-escalating potential conflict situations Traffic wardens currently operate in six towns throughout the county including Letterkenny, Buncrana, Ballybofey, Ballyshannon, Donegal Town and Bundoran.

“They provide a very valuable service in each of these towns ensuring effective traffic management and this includes the pay and display car parking facilities, the freeing up of car parking spaces in town centres to facilitate traders and ensuring that road markings such as double yellow lines are complied with. These road traffic laws have been introduced for very good reasons and traffic wardens fulfil a very important duty in making sure these laws are enforced. ʻTraffic wardens also assist schools in these areas during busy times of the day and are also on hand to give advice and directions to visitors and locals alike.

Traffic wardens are also responsible for issuing parking tickets and on the spot fines for parking violations, however John McLaughlin is keen to point out that the Council does not incentivise the issuing of tickets stating “the key performance indicator for Traffic Wardens is the number of vehicles logged on their patrols, not the number of parking tickets or fines issued”.

The Council has recently established a new centralised Parking section which is based in Letterkenny Public Service Centre. The role of this new Parking section is to provide an impartial and consistent approach to enforcement across the entire county.

John McLaughlin notes that this dedicated section will be looking at introducing new initiatives that will make the service more efficient and user-friendly, stating that “for example we are currently looking at introducing a ʻText to Payʼ service and other online options that will make the service more convenient and accessible to the public”. twenty one

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A nnouncement of ERDF grant assistance to local

authority capital works under the Designated Urban Centres Grants Scheme

The Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, in conjunction with the Southern Regional Assembly, and the Northern and Western Regional Assembly, announced the proposed local authority capital projects around Ireland that have been approved for ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) grants for sustainable urban development under the Designated Urban Centres Grants Scheme. Funding under the Scheme will enable project investments in Irish urban centres of the order of €127 million over the period to 2020 of which €40 million will be funded from the ERDF with matching funding from the relevant local authorities.

This ERDF co-funded grants scheme seeks specifically to increase the number of integrated regeneration initiatives to improve the urban environment and revitalise Irish urban areas. It makes available a new round of capital grant assistance for approved projects in designated urban centres which fit with integrated strategies to tackle the social, economic, environmental, climate and demographic challenges affecting the areas concerned, thereby contributing to the improvement of the development potential of the concerned areas and enhancing their economic, social and environmental conditions.

The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Alan Kelly TD said “There is a strong correlation between healthy and vibrant urban centres and the creation of an attractive environment and enterprise development within the wider region. Strong urban centres enable their regions to realise their potential in attractiveness for business investment, for Foreign Direct Investment for tourism and creating conducive and attractive locations for investment and for people to live and work in.”

Minister for Housing, Planning and Co-ordination of Construction 2020 Strategy Mr Paudie Coffey added “This investment in sustainable urban development

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recognises our cities and towns as the engines of the regional economy. This scheme will provide grant assistance to designated local authorities for urban capital projects. I am delighted that sustainable urban development is being prioritised for funding under the scheme announced, and that the investment being leveraged by the approved projects has the support of €40 million ERDF grants.”

Minister Kelly was joined in the announcement by the • Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Pascal Donohoe TD • Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD • Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Housing, Planning and Coordination of the Construction 2020 Strategy, Paudie Coffey TD Minister Heather Humphreys said: “Projects funded by this scheme will enhance the architectural heritage of our cities and towns, encourage sustainable development and revitalise

our urban historic areas. Most importantly, this scheme will also help to improve the quality of life of the communities that live, work and socialise in our urban centres.

“This scheme complements a number of initiatives being undertaken by my Department in conjunction with other government departments and agencies to promote the sustainable, heritage-led regeneration of our towns and cities. Ireland has a wealth of historic urban areas; this scheme will help to ensure that they thrive into the future by stimulating heritage-led regeneration while adding to the long-term sustainable development of towns and cities.”

Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport, Paschal Donohoe TD stated“Iʼm particularly pleased to see the number of sustainable transport measures being funded under this call. Weʼve seen a significant growth in the numbers cycling over the past few years due to the continued investment in cycling infrastructure by my Department, the National Transport Authority and local authorities. The measures announced today will see that growth continue. This also ties in with our recently launched National Physical Recreation Plan and shows this Governmentʼs commitment to sustainable transport modes. Iʼm pleased to see that Limerick is continuing to seek to improve their sustainable transport provision under this scheme following on from the €9m granted to them under my Departmentʼs Smarter Travel Area funding stream. The commitment to funding urban regeneration also ties in neatly with my responsibilities for tourism as these funds will make these towns and cities more attractive not only to live and work in but to visit.”

Local Authority Capital Projects eligible for grant assistance for Sustainable Urban Development under ERDF 2014-2020 Grant €

LA

Project

Cork Co. Co. (Mallow)

Redevelopment of Mallow Town Hall – project to redevelop the Hall as an Arts & Cultural Centre

1,000,000.00

Kilkenny Co. Co.

Abbey Creative Quarter Project

1,000,000.00

(Revitalise & regenerate the former Smithwicks Brewery site area, develop linear park, public realm spaces, provide street with pedestrian & cyclist priority, etc)

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Waterford Co. Co.

Public realm regeneration of Waterford City urban core – project to create a high amenity, high quality durable public realm

Wexford Co. Co.

Redevelopment of City Quays Area 1,000,000.00 – upgrades to Wexford Quays and Crescent, incl Trinity Wharf & related public realm areas

Cork City Gateway

Marina Park – project to develop Marina Park area, and the environmental enhancement of Monahan Road link with the Marina Park area

3,500,000.00

Cork City Gateway

Harley Street Pedestrian / Cycle Bridge - proposal to provide a dedicated cycle and pedestrian bridge across the North Channel of the river Lee

1,500,000.00

Limerick Gateway

URBAN CENTRE REVITALISATION – to include improved public realm, widened footpaths, re-aligned bus corridors, better traffic management

4,100,000.00

Limerick Gateway

SHANNON TOWN PARK – redesign Rineanna Park with circulation footpaths linking town centre with schools, community facilities & walks

Kerry Co. Co.Tralee

Town Centre West, Urban Development Project

1,500,000.00

South Dublin

Dodder Valley Greenway (South Dublin Co. Co.) – complete 2 phases of the scheme to install & extend cycle and pedestrian routes

1,470,000.00

Dublin City

Forbes Street Pedestrian & Cyclist Bridge (Dublin City Co. Co.) – provide an architecturally sensitive bridge to allow river passage & improve pedestrian and cyclist flow and access to this part of the city

2,940,000.00

Fingal

Swords Castle Cultural and Civic Quarter (Fingal Co. Co.) – Upgrade the Castle and surrounding buildings, regenerate the area

1,470,000.00

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4,000,000.00

400,000.00

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Dun Laoghaire / Rathdown

Dun Laoghaire Baths (DLRD Co. Co.) – project to migrate pedestrian footfall to the town centre, to retain the baths, to create pedestrian and cycle routes to the town centre and to provide new swimming facilities and jetty

1,120,000.00

Clare - Ennis

New County Library - construction of a new county library

1,000,000.00

Athlone

Church Street Enhancement

1,500,000.00

Dundalk

Clanbrasil Street and St Nicholas Quarter Rejuvenation Scheme

2,000,000.00

Galway

Galway City Library and Cultural Centre - project to build a city library & cultural centre

3,500,000.00

Letterkenny

Joe Bonner Link Road - to upgrade link road to enhance walking & cycling infrastructure

750,000.00

Letterkenny

Social Enterprise Building proposal for a new building

Letterkenny

Town Centre Linkages – proposal to upgrade footpaths & enhance walking infrastructure

Mullingar

Enhancement of Mullingar Town Centre Civic Areas

1,500,000.00

Sligo

O'Connell Street Enhancement

1,250,000.00

Sligo

Cranmore Services Centre – provision of a new Community Centre

750,000.00

Tullamore

Tullamore Street Enhancement Project and Millennium Square to Distillery Lane pedestrian bridge and walkway

1,500,000.00

Total awards €40m To be match-funded from local authoritiesʼ own resources

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1,000,000.00

250,000.00

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The Edesix VideoBadge Servicing the Community Edesix designs, develops and manufactures a range of professional Body Worn Camera (BWC) solutions to help solve complex industry challenges for those in public facing roles. Our BWCs are regularly utilised by Civil Enforcement Officers, Police, Paramedics, Security Companies and a variety of Lone Workers.

Edesix始s VideoBadge is a user-friendly, robust and secure BWC, often styled as an ID card holder. These BWCs are capable of efficiently recording shift-long HD video and audio footage from the viewpoint of the operator.

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Contact If you would like to find out more about the VideoBadge range of Body Worn Video Cameras, or would like to request a free trial, please visit www.edesix.com, or e-mail sales@edesix.com quoting LAN Magazine.

Disability Needs are one of the leading Home Adaptation suppliers and installers throughout Ireland working closely with the HSE, NHS, Charities, Local Councils and individuals for the past 20 years with offices located in Dublin and headquarters in Belfast.

Disability Needs are Bathroom Adaptation Specialists including level access shower trays, wet rooms, carefully located grab rails and walk in baths to help people bathe in safety and in a trip free environment.

Creating a ground floor toilet or ensuite will enable greater levels of independence and dignity. We can supply, fit and install Home lifts, designed for twostorey accommodation, used by wheelchair users and people who have restricted mobility. We can also help create and install easy Ramp Access to allow safe and hassle free access to homes so people can enter and leave their homes when they want.

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Wavin: The Complete Solution Setting the Standard From the capture of rainwater on the roof down to underfloor heating, Acoustic low noise soil & waste to AquaCell stormwater attenuation, and every connection in between, the breadth of our expertise gives you control over water at every level of the built environment. As experts with water, Wavin is well qualified to advise on how to comply with current and emerging regulation.

With Independent third party certification from the British Standards Institute and the National Standards Authority of Ireland, we manufacture our complete range to Current Irish Building Regulations. This cannot be said for all systems currently supplied onto the Irish market, in particular, for the underground drainage sector.

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rish Wheelchair Association (IWA) is one of IrelandĘźs leading social enterprises and representative organisations providing services and supports to over 20,000 members nationwide.

I

People with disabilities have very specific housing and accommodation requirements and often find it difficult to gain access to their preferred living situation. IWA represents the specific housing interests of people with disabilities through a range of initiatives which include direct provision of housing, information and advice, research, lobbying and advocacy.

The Association is a Voluntary Housing Association and has several Housing Projects nationwide. Through IWA centres in Dublin, Kilkenny, Limerick, Carlow, Tipperary, Mayo, Roscommon and Galway, the Association provides a range of housing options including long term independent living units, training for independent living and supported independent living.

To learn more about the housing options available to people with disabilities, including the direct provision of housing, housing information, advice on housing tenures, related services and supports, please contact Irish Wheelchair Association on 01 818 6400 or email customercare@iwa.ie.

Additional information is also available by visiting www.iwa.ie

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