Twenty years of property-led urban regeneration in Ireland: outputs, impacts, implications

Abstract

Fiscal incentives were introduced in the mid 1980s to encourage new private residential construction and refurbishment in the inner areas of Ireland's main cities. These were subsequently extended to include the city suburbs and large towns. At the same time, the economic context for their implementation changed radically as an economic and population boom replaced prolonged recession and population decline. In their early years, the incentives were successful. However, the decision to extend their lifespan and geographical focus was problematic because, during Ireland's economic boom, they had less success in achieving their aims and were associated with deadweight, displacement and excess housing supply.