Residents told to pay arrears to services firm

Two Dublin residents have been ordered to pay over €1,000 in charges to companies managing their housing estates.

Conor Walsh, Bishops Orchard, Tyrrellstown, and Cletus Okonkwo, Curragh Hall Avenue, Tyrrellstown, had refused to pay service charges to Tyrrellstown Management Companies, citing the charges as a "double taxation".

Smith Property Management, which is the managing agent for Tyrrellstown Management Companies, was in Dublin District Court yesterday as the agent pursuing the charges. Mr Walsh was ordered to pay €931.70, outstanding charges since 2004, while Mr Okonkwo was ordered to pay €248.20.

Alastair Rutherdale, for the defendants, agreed his clients had signed contracts with Twinlite Developments and Glynn and Larkin Construction, developers of the estate, to pay a service charge to their estate's management company for the upkeep of common areas. Both defendants made initial service payments on purchase of their homes in 2003.

Mr Rutherdale argued that under the terms of the planning permission granted by Fingal County Council to the property developer at Tyrrellstown, all roads, footpaths, verges, open spaces, sewage and water drainage must be managed by the developer, or a management company on its behalf. "What is happening is entire chunks of estates are being put into the hands of management companies," said Mr Rutherdale.

Elizabeth Dunne, for the management company, said Mr Rutherdale was attempting to open a discussion on planning legislation. She said it was not relevant to the case. "We could go off in tangents all over the place," she added.

Judge David Maughan refused to hear arguments outside the scope of the "debt collection matter" and told Mr Rutherdale such arguments should be a matter for separate proceedings.

He ordered that the service charges be paid in full, with costs awarded against the defendants. He told Mr Rutherdale: "This does not stop you raising these issues in a different court." The defendants are considering an appeal.

Among those in court yesterday were Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins and Independent TD Catherine Murphy. Mr Higgins said: "The central issue in this is local authorities are shirking their responsibilities." Ms Murphy said it was a growing issue which would gain momentum in the run-up to the general election.