Unfinished Derry housing estate - Reilly calls land processing review

The Department of Regional Development has been called on by a former Mayor of Derry to review the process for adopting private land.

SDLP Derry City Councillor Martin Reilly (pictured above) has supported residents from Copperthorpe in the Waterside who have been calling for their housing development to be adopted by Transport NI (formerly Roads Service) for some years now.

The estate was built in three phases and since then residents  have expressed concerns over the years about faulty streetlights, uneven footpaths and broken fences which are allowing livestock to enter the estate.

Cllr Reilly said: “These residents who purchased their own home now find the wider environment to be distinctly different from the glossy brochures available when they decided to buy in this area.

“Some of the properties in the third phase of this development remain unfinished which adds to their concerns.

“Unfortunately, the developer of this site has gone into administration, and I have spoken to both Transport NI and the administrators of this site about these problems.  Action needs to be taken on all three phases which are at various levels of completion.

“I have raised concerns with the Regional Development Minister Danny Kennedy of how the system has allowed the taxpayer to be exposed to additional costs which should have been borne by the developer.”

Cllr Reilly concluded: “I am therefore calling for DRD to review this system to ensure that home buyers and taxpayers don’t find themselves in this position again.”