by Kate Heaney
DONEGAL County Council is planning to build 165 social houses at the 8.2 acre site they acquired last year on Letterkenny’s High Road.
A tender has been published seeking an architect-led design team for the project and the closing date for applications is February 16.
The estimated guide for the team who provide the tendered service is €3.2 million and includes procurement of full Architect-Led Design Team Services for the provision of approximately 165 Social Housing units at High Road, through the various Construction Works Stages.
Specialist services include Design Team Leader, Master Planner and Urban Designer, Civil and Structural Engineering Services, Mechanical and Electrical Services, Quantity Surveyor, Landscape Architectural Services, Planning and Environmental Services, Traffic and Transport Services, Archaeology Services, Building Information Modelling Manager, and Project Supervisor Design Process (PSDP).
The list of services to be provided includes 33 specific items on the tender document.
Cllr Gerry McMonagle welcomed news this week of the tender being out for the design service for the site. Speaking to the Donegal News he said the council bought that land to build much-needed houses on it.
“I am really pleased now that the tender for the design stage is out. I know it may take two to three years before people are actually moving into homes there but this tender is a very important step on that road. It shows the council’s intention to improve the availability of homes here,” he added.
When Donegal County Council confirmed the purchase of the High Road site last year, they estimated that between it and, an almost 14 acre site they purchased at Ballymacool in the town, the housing investment in both sites would run to circa €75 million for the local economy.
In a statement they said “It is estimated that the two Letterkenny sites alone will result in a direct housing capital investment of over €75m in the local economy.
“The news is a significant boost to the County, not only from the perspective of the provision of much needed new homes, but the anticipated associated benefits such as building up the confidence in the local construction sector, additional employment, and the potential to attract local construction workers back to the County.”
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