Independent Councillor Donal Barry has again called for an update on the Clarendon Court apartment complex on Penrose Lane in Waterford City.
Documents from An Coimisiún Pleanála show that Waterford Council attempted to CPO the complex in 2018.
A CPO is a Compulsory Purchase Order which allows public bodies to acquire property in certain situations without the owner’s consent.
The CPO Activation Programme launched in 2023 to help local authorities to buy derelict or vacant properties when the owners won’t cooperate or can’t be found.
Waterford Council’s CPO of Clarendon Court was annulled in 2018 when the owners’ objections were upheld by An Bord Pleanála.
The legal status of Clarendon Court apartments are currently unknown, with the growing disrepair of the complex visible from the street.
Having been contacted for comment by The Munster Express, the Council replied with the following statement:
“Discussions are ongoing in progressing this critical city centre project between all stakeholders.”
A Waterford City Housing report dated June 2025 states in relation to Clarendon Court “Negotiations with owner’s ongoing – new management company being formed”
A formal presentation
With 8 years having passed since the CPO effort was annulled, and 24 apartments sitting empty during a housing crisis, calls for clarity are increasing with Independent Donal Barry, repeatedly raising the issue at recent Council meetings.
Speaking at a recent meeting of the Metropolitan Municipal District Council, Councillor Declan Barry said, “I am formally requesting that the Executive prepare and present a comprehensive report on Clarendon Court, apartment complex, Penrose Lane, which has been left vacant since 2012, CPO’d by the Council in 2018 and is now in an advanced and worsening state of dereliction”.
“Despite repeated requests, I have received no response outlining the total amount of taxpayers’ money already spent on this site. This lack of transparency is unacceptable, particularly given the scale and duration of the issue,” said Cllr. Barry.
While the full cost of renovating these apartments cannot be precisely quantified at this stage,” continued Cllr. Barry, “previous estimates – when adjusted for construction inflation – indicate that the refurbishment alone would amount to several million euro”.
“When this is considered alongside the original purchase cost of the building, ongoing Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) expenditures to landlords, for households who should be accommodated in these units, the loss of rental income to the Council, associated legal costs, and the cost implications of swapping a house in Viewmount for one of the vacant commercial units, it is evident that taxpayers are carrying a financial burden running into many millions of euro,” he said.
“Such a prolonged and costly failure would not be tolerated in the private sector. It would trigger immediate intervention, clear accountability, and decisive corrective action.
“Clarendon Court must be resolved as a matter of urgency,” finished Cllr. Barry.
In reply to Councillor Barry’s request, a representative from the Housing Department, reminded Cllr. Barry that Clarendon Court had been subject to a recent Freedom of Information request, and accepted his call for a formal presentation.
“I know that was the subject of a significant FOI response…the FOI response was quite extensive. I will ask our capital delivery team to give a formal presentation on the current status of that,” said the council official. “I know we are having an increased engagement with other owners of that property. I’ll ask them for an update on where that stands.”
AARON KENT
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme
