LOCAL authorities have been authorised to build or acquire almost 4,000 new houses this year under the 1996 housing programme published by the Department of the Environment yesterday.
The average cost of each house is about £40,000. The number of housing starts authorised for this year 3,950 is virtually the same as last year, and compares with 3,500 in 1994.
The allocation for public authority housing in this year's Budget was £158.58 million.
The 1996 programme, together with the output from other social housing measures, such as voluntary housing schemes, shared ownership and vacancies in existing local authority housing, will enable 10,000 households to be catered for, according to the Minister for the Environment, Mr Howlin, and the Minister of State for Housing and Urban Renewal Ms Liz McManus.
"The local authority housing programme has now been brought, back up to a sustainable and satisfactory level from the very low levels of the late 1980s and the early 1990s," they said in a statement.
"By the end of this year, social housing output will have in creased by almost two thirds since 1992, improving general access to housing and shortening the length of time on waiting lists."
The Ministers called on local authorities to press ahead promptly with preparatory work on their programmes to ensure targets are achieved. They also asked local authorities to ensure a good mix of housing and to "mitigate" the extent and effects of social segregation in housing areas.
The provision of adequate security for elderly and disabled residents should also be a priority for local authorities.
In addition, in the context of the Village Renewal Programme, special efforts should be made to identify infill sites for housing, they said.
The largest number of housing "starts" is in the Dublin Corporation area, where 500 houses are to be built or acquired.
