Tag: maintenance

Ashefield Residents Association 2014 Collection

Dear Resident,
The 2014 Ashefield Residents Annual Fund Raising Collection will be take place at the times listed below. The funds collected will be used in the upkeep of the common areas in the estate. The main expense incurred is the grass cutting in the large green areas.

With a view to continuing this work the Resident Association Committee Members are requesting a contribution of €20 per household (reduced from €30 in 2013).

It cost approximately €1345 to cut the grass and do other minor repairs in 2013. Accounts are available on www.ashefield.com)

The collection has been well supported in the past and we are sure that we can rely on your support once again this year. To make things easier we have also set up a PayPal account on this website into which, your contribution may be paid. You can also make your contribution by contacting a committee member who will issue you with a receipt.
Collection Times;

• Mon 14 Jul 2014 7:00pm to 9:00pm

• Fri 18 Jul 2014 7:00pm to 9:00pm

• Sat 19 Jul 2014 10:30am to 14:30pm

Dear Resident,
Thanks for your support in 2013 and we hope that you can be as supportive this year. Ashefield has a website, e-mail address, Twitter account, and a Facebook page to help you keep up with to date and to contact us.We encourage you to use these to stay in touch with both the residents association and residents. The committee comprises all unpaid volunteers – your neighbours, who are willing to spare some time.
Your contribution is very important. It falls back on us as a community to maintain and improve the common areas in the estate. We realise that time is precious so therefore we appreciate all and any help you can give. This can involve calling on Tesco to collect abandoned shopping trolleys or picking up litter in your area.
We encourage you to contact us with your ideas, suggestions, and indeed and get involved with your residents association. One of the ideas we are looking at is setting up is setting up a Community Text Alert. In order to gauge the level of interest in this; can you either e-mail us at info@165.227.235.101 or make your interest known to a committee member.

Holes in the walls of planning conditions

It’s difficult not to notice that the wall between the estate main entrance road and apartments is deteriorating.  This wall runs between the block of apartments and main estate along the main estate entrance road.  However, due to its location, it has been unclear who is responsible for the upkeep of this wall.

Members of Ashefield’s residents’ committee contacted Westmeath County Council about this.  The main aims here were to clarify who is responsible for the maintenance of this wall and to try and get the problems fixed.  The key questions raised, and responses received from the council are:

Q. For some time now, we have been observing the slow but seemingly inexorable descent into decrepitude of the low boundary wall between the apartments and the estate proper. There doesn’t seem to be anyone taking responsibility for the condition of this wall.

A. The boundary walls of an Estate become the responsibility of the residents once an Estate has been Taken in Charge and are the responsibility of the residents/Management company (whichever is applicable) of any apartments from the date of first occupancy/formation of Management Company. (Reference Westmeath County Council’s “Guidelines for Purchasers in Residential Developments” Policy)


Q. The original planning permission (97/655) had a condition (#30) that a management company was to be established to look after the maintenance of the apartments and common areas. This led to the registration of a company called Minkridge Management Company Limited in March/April 2001. Looking up this company on www.cro.ie I find that its status is recorded as “dissolved” with an effective date of June 2002. It seems clear that this company was never intended to actually perform the maintenance role and was a mere artifice in the successful attempt by Fernside Homes Ltd. to gain planning permission.

A. Condition 30 of Planning Reference 97/655 has been complied with by the Developer in 2001 in that the Management Company was set up for the maintenance of the apartments

Q. Are there separate planning references (presumably with attached conditions) for the different phases of the scheme’s development?

A. The only main Planning Reference for this Development appears to be Ref. 97/655, however you can come into our offices and request a Planning Search and ask to view the Planning Files.

Q. The planning reference only seems to cover Apts. 10-26 (there is no Apt. #13). There is an additional block of apartments (27-30) for which I don’t have a separate planning reference. Is there a separate planning permission for #27-30? Are there any conditions related to a management company?

A. I am not aware of a separate Planning Reference for apartments 27-30, however, you can view Planning File Ref. 97/655 in this regard.
Q. It is my understanding that the council endeavors to ensure that all conditions on planning permissions are satisfied prior to taking an estate in charge. I gather that the council doesn’t take apartment developments in charge, but can your enforcement section offer any input here? It would seem like the lack of a management company would have been evident when the council took the estate in charge?
A. At the time that the Estate was being Taken in Charge, the Apartments would not have been taken into consideration as they were not being Taken in Charge.


Streetlights and the council’s new website

Reporting faulty streetlights – spotted any more in need of repair recently? Also – Westmeath Co. Co. has a new website.

Westmeath Co. Co. has been made aware of the need to fix a streetlight outside #130 Ashefield. Update: Airtricity is expected to fix this within the next few days

Have you spotted any other streetlights in need of repair in the area? If so, please do add the details using the comments area below. If you can, please include the nearest house number and streetlight number. The streetlight number is located about halfway up the pole on a yellow or white sticker.

The council’s newly re-designed website is worth taking a look at.  Thankfully, they have worked on making it easier to find essential information and services, and have included a handy map to help locate services like recycling facilities and libraries.  A ‘tell us’ page was also added but does not include a specific maintenance report form for problems like faulty streetlights.  However, it looks like they should easily be able to add this option.

Have you any suggestions for them to make it easier to find the information you need? If so, why not contact them directly or if you prefer, use the comments area below and we can pass them on to them.

A note to Ashefield residents

Folks, you should all have received the note below from the residents association by now, or over the next couple of days. If you’ve found ashefield.com from that note, welcome! – hope you find this site useful. Contact the site at info [at] ashefield.com if you have any news, photos of the area, or would like to add your service details if you’re a resident.

It is lovely to see the end of the cold weather and nice that the bright evenings are kicking in. With Spring in the air, we would like to remind residents that the grass cutting season will soon be here.

As you may know, since the county council took over our estate some years ago from the developer, Billy Connolly, it is now the responsibility of us, the residents, to look after the common areas within the estate.

To enable and assist in the maintenance and general upkeep of these areas, the residents association is once again asking for a contribution of €30 from each household towards these costs.

Collectors will call shortly to all houses in Ashefield and it would be appreciated if residents in a position to contribute would kindly do so.

Tenants are requested to pass this information on to their landlords.