Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 November 2025
686. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the State-owned and local-authority-owned sites zoned for residential development but not yet activated; the number of homes each site is expected to deliver; and the timeline for activation. [63964/25]
View answerThe zoning of land for particular purposes, including housing, is an exercise undertaken by planning authorities as part of their overall statutory plan function generally as part of a development plan under sections 9 to 13 of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 (as amended), but can at present also be carried out as part of a local area plan (LAP) process. The making of a development plan or an LAP is a reserved function of the elected members of each authority.
It should be noted in the first instance that the zoning of land within a development plan or a local area plan is not broken down on the basis of individual sites or parcels of land in individual ownerships. My Department therefore does not have the requested details for local authorities available.
However, the Land Development Agency (LDA) has developed the State Lands Database which provides a detailed and mapped representation of the extent and location of lands owned by public bodies including local authorities in Ireland.
Details of the zoning status of lands identified in the State Lands Database are available as part of the information provided by the LDA. This zoning information is sourced from the MyPlan.ie platform which amalgamates the zoning information from statutory City and County Development Plans nationally.
The LDA has also completed the Register of Relevant Lands, being lands owned by local authorities and bodies listed under Schedule 1 and 2 of the Land Development Agency Act 2021, in urban population areas greater than 10,000.
Both the State Lands Database and the Register of Relevant Lands are also available in an online map format on the LDA website at the following link: www.lda.ie/register-of-relevant-lands/map/.
It should also be noted that all Local Authorities publish annual Residential Zoned Land Tax maps for identifying land that is liable for the tax. However, these maps do not provide a breakdown of land ownership categories, so they cannot provide the information requested.
The Deputy may wish to contact the relevant agencies and local authorities to seek further information.
