Louth County Council sign contract for 72 new social houses

Construction of 72 new social houses at Boice Court Phase 2, Mell, Drogheda will get underway in the coming weeks, following the appointment by Louth County Council of contractor M.L Quinn Construction Ltd.

The €27,220,530 construction project will be the largest social housing development to be built in Drogheda in recent years, and will provide new homes for individuals and families on Louth County Council’s social housing waiting list.

The project consists of the construction of 72 housing units consisting of 31 houses, 25 apartments and 16 duplex units, and associated site development and external works.

There are a further two three bed detached bungalows, designed with input from HSE Occupational Therapists, and 10 two-bed accessible ground floor apartments, which have been designed with the needs of older people in mind.

In addition, there is open space in the middle of the development allowing most of the houses to have an aspect to green space.

The site at Mell, Drogheda, is situated on the north side of the town, in a mature residential area.

It is located on the eastern side of Cement Road, and backs on to St. Joseph’s Terrace in Loughboy. Its eastern boundary is shared in part with Mell Lane and the houses in Fountain Hill.

The south-eastern portion of the site shares a boundary with St. Joseph’s National School, Mell which is an existing two-storey school.

Boice Court Phase 2 follows the completion of construction at Boice Court Phase 1, in November 2012.

The proposed development will be served by two accesses; one from Mell Lane which serves the existing St. Joseph’s National School and the other access which is directly off Cement Road.

There will be no through-road in the development.  Both accesses are essentially cul-de-sacs which are linked via a pedestrian hard landscaped pedestrian route.

Part 8 was granted for the majority of the development on 9th June 2008, with a small section receiving Part 8 grant on 1st November 2021.

Following a competitive tender process, Contractor M.L Quinn Construction, Belleeks, Newry were awarded the contract, and construction is expected to commence in June 2023.

Chief Executive, Joan Martin, welcomed the development, saying:

“It provides a major boost to the social housing stock in the town of Drogheda.”

Director of Services, Paddy Donnelly, said:

“It is great to see this development commence construction. Drogheda has not seen such a large development of social housing in many years.”

Funding for the housing project has been awarded by Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, with an all-in budget cost of €27,220,530.73.