Corporation to evict man (60) from his home

A Dublin man in his sixties has been given less than three weeks to move from his home before he is evicted by Dublin Corporation.

Mr Tony Byrne's house in Cork Street has become the subject of a Compulsory Purchase Order by Dublin Corporation as part of its plans for the redevelopment of the Coombe Integrated Area. Mr Byrne (60) has owned the house for 23 years.

A number of corporation officials called to Mr Byrne's house yesterday and asked him to surrender his keys. He refused on the advice of his solicitors. Mr Byrne said the corporation representatives left "politely".

He had been aware his house would be demolished for about six years. He said he has accepted he has to vacate his home. However, he feels he should be offered a fair price for the three-bedroomed house.

"I don't want to break the law, so I will leave, but I want to stay in the area and I will need reasonable compensation to do so."

Dublin Corporation said it had been in negotiations with Mr Byrne for "a considerable length of time", and it made him a compensation offer two years ago which he declined.

Although the corporation was unwilling to disclose the sum for legal reasons, Mr Byrne has confirmed he was offered £65,000 for his house at the time, with an additional £20,000 disturbance money. A house came on the market around this time with a guide price of £75,000. Mr Byrne put in a bid on the strength of the offer from the corporation, but subsequent bids drove the price far beyond his budget.

Mr Byrne said that after he declined this offer he received no further written contact from the corporation until April of this year when he received a "Notice to Treat" asking him to submit an estimate of value for his house.

Mr Byrne's solicitors submitted a claim of £240,000 for the value of the house but have not received any written response. Mr Byrne said he was told by the corporation two weeks ago he could look for a house in the region of £150,000. This figure was increased on Tuesday to £180,000.

He said these sums have been "vague offers" and the corporation had given him "no clear written indication" of its estimate of the value of his house. He has contacted various estate agents in the hope of finding suitable accommodation within this price range but has been told that three-bedroom houses in the area cost a minimum of £200,000. The only houses available for £180,000 are one-bedroom or possibly small two-bedroom houses.

The corporation said it understood Mr Byrne wanted to remain in the area but his property was required for a road-widening project by the middle of August.

"I have no intention of putting him out on the streets," said Mr Michael Stubbs, project manager for the Liberty/Coombe Integrated Area, "but we have been very reasonable with Mr Byrne".

Mr Stubbs said the corporation recently offered Mr Byrne temporary accommodation in a onebedroom corporation apartment in Ross Road but this was also rejected. He said he was disappointed the matter had gone this far and would be happy for Mr Byrne to get an independent estate agent to value the house.