Judge halts demolition of illegal houses

A judge has ordered that demolition work should stop on illegally-built homes which currently house four single mothers and their 10 children.

Two houses in a complex of six at Knockadosan, Rathdrum, Co Wicklow, have already been knocked down by their owner, Leslie Armstrong, who has admitted building them illegally.

Wicklow County Council sought that Mr Armstrong, of Main Street, Rathdrum, be sent to jail for not complying with a court order to demolish all the houses dating back to May 2005. However, Circuit Court judge Terence O'Sullivan said the human rights of the "vulnerable people" living in the homes "trumped" the council's belief that previous court orders should be complied with immediately.

He expressed his concern about demolition work being carried out at the site, and said it was not a function of the court to put children in danger.

Mr Armstrong's counsel, Raymond Comyn SC, said his client was "between a rock and a hard place" in complying with the order of the court while ensuring that his tenants were not left homeless.

He said Mr Armstrong had sought to show his bona fides by demolishing two vacant houses while taking down porches and guttering in all the houses.

He said the essence of Mr Armstrong's defence was contained in an article in The Irish Timeswhere he admitted he had done wrong, acknowledged that the council was within its rights to order the demolition of the houses, but suggested that his tenants be allowed stay until alternative accommodation be found for them.

Mr Comyn said eviction orders that had been served on Mr Armstrong's tenants had caused a "huge furore locally", and the families were reluctant to move into a local hostel.

He noted that 19 new local authority houses being built in Rathdrum would be coming on stream in May or June.

He hoped that alternative accommodation would be found for Mr Armstrong's tenants by then.

Counsel for Wicklow County Council Paul Murray said it was a "desperate situation" but that it was entirely of Mr Armstrong's own making. Mr Armstrong had "commercial motives" to build the houses without planning permission to keep some of his employees in work, and he was in receipt of rent for these tenants.

Mr Murray told Wicklow Circuit Court sitting in Bray that Mr Armstrong had ample time to comply with previous orders made by the Circuit Court.

Mr Armstrong had sent a letter to the council in September 2006 explaining his reluctance to demolish the houses because of concerns about his tenants, but had done nothing about it since.

Judge O'Sullivan said Mr Armstrong had given the court a "reasonable explanation" as to why he had not complied with the order, and he was, therefore, not in contempt of court.

He said he was satisfied that the order would be complied with eventually.

The judge ordered a stay to be put on proceedings for a year to see if alternative accommodation could be found for Mr Armstrong's tenants, although he stressed that he was not ordering the council to rehouse them.

He also ordered that all demolition work be halted at the site.

Mr Comyn gave an undertaking that all demolition work would stop immediately, and the site would be secured.

Linda Gahan (25), who lives in one of the houses with her five-year-old daughter Chloe, said she was delighted by the decision.

"We're really relieved, but we need to get the damage done to our houses repaired and the central heating reinstated."

Mr Armstrong said: "I know I've done wrong, but I'm so glad that we have a court system in the country that is humane and that good judges, in their wisdom, protect the children."