The landlord at Tathony House has applied to appeal the Residential Tenancies Board decision that the mass eviction in the Dublin 8 apartment block was invalid.
At the same time Tathony House residents are uniting with tenants from Applewood in Swords, who are also facing eviction, at a rally this Saturday at 2pm outside Dublin City Council’s offices on Wood Quay Dublin.
Tenants are calling for penalties for landlords who refuse to engage with the government’s tenant in situ scheme and instead insist on making families homeless.
Dublin City Council have contacted the landlord at Tathony House, Ronan McDonnell, on 5 occasions and he hasn’t even replied – despite the fact that purchase would entail the landlord getting market price and keeping people in their homes.
We need radical solutions to solve this unprecedented housing crisis.
“The government should just save us from the never-ending hell of having an eviction hanging over our heads,” said Tathony tenant and community worker James O’Toole, “they could re-introduce the eviction ban and bring us in line with other EU countries were no fault evictions are permanently illegal. Our landlord is just going to keep pushing until everyone is out of the block and the existing legislation offers us no real help.”
People Before Profit Cllr Madeleine Johansson, also a tenant at Tathony House, said: “These landlords and the purchasers of these properties would need planning permission to redevelop – councils could deny planning permission if families are being evicted to facilitate the sale. We also need an extension of Compulsory Purchase powers so the councils can buy blocks like ours and the landlord can go off with his cash.”
RALLY 2PM SAT SEPT 9TH DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL, WOOD QUAY OFFICES, DUBLIN.