The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne TD, and the Minister of State for Planning and Local Government, John Cummins TD, have confirmed the first tranche of the Government's €1 billion Housing Infrastructure Investment Fund (HIIF), naming 82 infrastructure projects for support. Waterford City and County Council is among the beneficiaries, winning funding for three strategic schemes aimed at speeding up homebuilding and supporting sustainable growth across the county.

At Gracedieu, the Strategic Residential Distributor Road will provide 200 metres of new local primary road and a new roundabout to replace the existing T‑junction. The upgrade is expected to directly open up land for around 365 new homes and help enable adjacent lands with capacity for more than 4,000 additional residential units.

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In Dungarvan, the Town and Environs Stormwater and Accelerated Housing Infrastructure Project will deliver approximately 1 kilometre of new stormwater infrastructure, including 1,500mm and 1,200mm diameter pipelines on strategically zoned lands. The works have the potential to directly unlock sites for 1,104 homes and indirectly support delivery of over 3,000 further residential units.

The Waterford North Quays Liveability and Accelerated Housing Delivery Project will provide shared access infrastructure and improved active travel connectivity, delivered in collaboration with the Land Development Agency. HIIF funding will cover transport works including a pedestrian link bridge and shared public access and active travel routes, with the potential to directly unlock lands for 1,510 residential units and indirectly facilitate a further 1,938 homes.

Speaking after the announcement, Sean McKeown, Chief Executive of Waterford City and County Council, welcomed the decision: "This investment represents a major vote of confidence by the Government in Waterford's future growth and development.

"By unlocking these strategically important lands, we are creating the conditions necessary to deliver high-quality, affordable homes for individuals and families across Waterford. This fund has been specifically designed to address those barriers and accelerate the delivery of much-needed housing."