Joe Costello
Question:169 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Health if he will give the background to the sale of Eastern Health Board land formally incorporating the Lourdes Unit at the rear of Ashgrove House, Navan Road, Dublin 7.
Written Answers. - Health Board Land Sale.
The Eastern Health Board has supplied me with the following background information with regard to the sale of the land in question. The health board land at the rear of Ashgrove House totals approximately five acres. The board proposes to provide facilities for the elderly on the site to replace the Lourdes Unit, now demolished. The type of development intended here and on other sites throughout the Eastern region is a small community based modern complex rather than a large institutional building. The ideal site for this kind of development has been identified as approximately one to two acres. Accordingly, the board is retaining two acres of the site for this purpose and is selling the remaining three acres to fund the development.
To enhance the value of the three acre site on the open market the board applied for planning permission for a housing project. After months of investigation the planning authorities advised that planning permission would not be forthcoming because of inadequate access to the site. Problems relating to sewerage and drainage connections were also cited. The site is effectively landlocked and without planning permission its commercial value is considerably diminished.
As the developer of the adjoining site already has an approved access road and sewerage and drainage connections that could be extended to the board's site, the board negotiated with the developer for the sale of the site. A sale price of £275,000 was agreed subject to the purchaser obtaining planning permission. The current position is that in accordance with standard procedure the proposed sale has been submitted to me for my approval. I have not yet made a decision on the matter as I am awaiting a report from the Valuation Office.