Raphoe mansion is now worthless because of defective concrete

ON the open market it should have a price tag of more than €1 million but instead a luxury 3-storey house in Raphoe has just been declared worthless by professional valuers due to its crumbling walls and foundations.

The home is owned by Rosalind and Frank McBrearty. In his heyday Frank Snr was one of the most successful businessmen in Co Donegal. Mr McBreaty will turn 80 in August. He says the defective blocks crisis has dashed his and Rosalind’s dreams of retiring happily in the company of their grandchildren.

“We’re taking it very hard altogether, especially my wife. She does all her painting and other hobbies here. This house was her dream. We hoped that this would be the family home for years to come. All our photographs are here,” said Mr McBrearty.

“I’ve taken it very bad because of all the money I’ve wasted. Myself and my wife might be dead before the whole thing is concluded. I’ve arthritis of the spine, shoulders, neck, legs, and arms. It’s so bad that I need carers to come in,” he added.

The couple were married in 1968 and have four sons and one daughter. Everything inside their home is finished to the highest standard but the house must be demolished because of defective concrete.

“We have two sons in America and between them they have six children, our grandchildren. My other children also have given us grandchildren. That’s why we built the house so that they can come and visit us,” explained Mr McBrearty.

Documentation

The Chronicle’s sister newspaper, The Donegal News has seen documentation relating to the property. Auctioneers have determined that only the land now has value, worth €60,000 at best. Property Tax on the home is set at €465. We were also shown a receipt for expenditure of almost €15,000.

“That’s what we paid engineers and specialists to examine the concrete in the blocks and foundations. Samples were taken and sent to labs in England and it came back positive that the whole lot is affected by the problem.

Cost

“Once the house is demolished, it will take a few hundred thousand to lift the blocks and concrete foundations, and move it to somewhere that the government decides is the right place to put it. Right now we don’t know where,” said Mr McBrearty. It’s in the hands of my lawyers now. I’ve done everything and sent everything to my lawyers. They’ve appointed Junior and Senior Counsel to pursue this in the High Court so that we can get a new house built,” he added.

It’s not the first time Mr Brearty’s life has been turned upside down. He, along members of his family, were harassed by rogue gardaí following the 1996 death of local man Richie Barron. They were later completely exonerated by the Morris Tribunal.

“We were accused of something we didn’t do. We were all arrested and taken to Letterkenny Garda Station. I became very unwell there and was taken to hospital. The doctors told the gardaí that I couldn’t be interviewed because my heart couldn’t take it.

“The people told us it was impossible to beat the system that was against us but in the end we were all freed and found completely innocent of any wrongdoing. It was a big scandal but we won,” recalls Mr McBrearty.

One June 5, the proud Raphoe man is due to travel with members of his family to Finner Camp where he’ll be awarded a medal in recognition of his six months tour of duty with the 36th Infantry Battalion in the Congo which commenced on December 8, 1960.

“The 35th Battalion came out of the trenches and we went into the trenches for four weeks. We then protected a refugee camp from being attacked by different tribes. It’s a long time ago but I can still remember everything about it.

“The ‘Battle of the Tunnel’ saw three of our men killed and five or six were injured. God rest those who died. Their bodies were flown back to Dublin,” said Mr McBrearty.

Due to regulations introduced since their home was first constructed, it’s estimated that the McBrearty’s would have to spend up to €2 million in order to rebuild their home near Raphoe. Frank Snr has overcome many adversarial situations in his life and he’s confident it will be no different this time around.

“I had a very good life and God’s been very good to me in every way. I did a lot of private praying to God. I’m not overly religious but I believe in God and the Holy mother.

“ I’ve my own way of doing my own things,” concluded a resilient Mr McBrearty.