Doubts have emerged over the future of a proposed massive housing development in Derry.
The proposal would have seen up to 5,000 new houses built on a huge site at Buncrana Road.
However, the bulk of the site has now been taken over by the bank to be sold on.
Plans for the H2 site were first lodged with the Planning Service in 2006, which sought permission for the construction of thousands of homes at lands west of the Buncrana Road between Whitehouse Road and Coshquin.
The application also included provision for a new primary school, play parks and community facilities at the site, as well as drainage facilities and road infrastructure to cope with sheer size of the proposal.
The proposal was hailed by many people at the time as a possible solution to the ongoing housing shortage in the city, in addition to being a welcome boost for the building industry.
The Department of the Environment (DoE), which had responsibility for the Planning Service, had been on the verge of issuing permission for the development to go ahead in late 2008.
However, the economic downturn, legal issues and changes of ownership within the consortium of builders behind the proposals meant the development was put on hold.
The Derry News revealed in November 2013 discussions continued between the developers and planners to hammer out an agreement that would finally allow work to begin on the H2 site.
It’s now been claimed that the bulk of the site has been handed over to the ownership of a bank, with concerns over the future of the H2 development.
The claim was made at a meeting of Derry City and Strabane District Council’s planning committee, at which Sinn Fein councillor Tony Hassan expressed concerns that he had received no update from planners on the H2 site despite having asked for a progress two months ago.
He told the meeting that he had ‘recently been made aware that 80 per cent of the land had been handed back to the bank for re-sale’.
Cllr Hassan added Clanmil Housing Association had now expressed an interest in building social housing at the H2 site.
He said that such a development would help address the housing shortage in Derry that he would be willing to work with Canmil to create more social housing in the local council area.
A spokesperson for Clanmil Housing Association said it interested in the ‘development potential’ of the H2 site.
The spokesperson added: “We remain committed to identifying and acquiring further development opportunities that will allow us to provide more much need homes in Derry,” the spokesperson said.
“We would be very interested in meeting with the owners of the H2 site to investigate its development potential.
“Any assistance from Cllr Hassan or other local political representatives with progressing such a meeting would be greatly appreciated.”
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