40% of businesses in Leitrim who were billed for a commercial vacancy rate last year have turned the property to a use or have been sold on.
Leitrim County Council's Budget meeting was told that there are currently 260 empty commercial properties in the county - the second highest vacancy rate in the country.
Head of Finance Vincent Dwyer revealed that the overall liability for those buildings is €580,000 but under the council's 25% levy on empty commercial properties, the money owed to the Council is €70,000 and 85 payments were received in relation to the scheme last year.
The meeting heard that 90 of the empty properties in Leitrim last year were shops, and a new Covid hardship fund of €20,000 is aimed at helping businesses who have struggled during the pandemic to try and find a way to engage with the Council for some future viability of premises.
