Bernard Allen
Question:155 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Defence the amounts received by his Department from the disposal of military barracks vacated in September 1998; and the expenditure since that date. [4639/02]
Written Answers. - Defence Forces Property.
The Government, on 15 July 1998, approved a programme of evacuation and sale of six barracks which are considered surplus to military requirements. The barracks in question are located at Fermoy, Ballincollig, Naas, Kildare, Castleblayney and Clancy Barracks, Dublin.
The sale of 19.218 acres at the former Fitzgerald Camp, Fermoy to Cork County Council, in conjunction with the IDA, for €973,889, £767, 000, has been completed. The lands will be developed and marketed as a strategic industrial site to attract inward investment. This development will greatly assist in the continuing revitalisation of Fermoy and will greatly enhance its potential for future industrial development.
The former Devoy Barracks, Naas, County Kildare, comprises an area of approximately 22 acres. I agreed to cede seven acres free of charge to Naas Urban District Council and to sell one acre to Kildare County Council for €380,921, £300,000, for local community purposes. I have also agreed to sell the remaining 14 acres, approximately, which are zoned for housing, to Naas UDC for €8,888,167, £7 million. The legal formalities to give effect to these agreements are progressing and I expect them to be completed very shortly.
Regarding Castleblayney, the property has been sold to the North-Eastern Health Board for €761,843, £600,000, and the legal formalities are now completed.
The integrated action area plan, which was commissioned from independent consultants to provide for the future development of the former Murphy Barracks, Ballincollig, has now been adopted by Cork County Council. A tender competition has been held for the appointment of selling agents for the former barracks and it is expected that an appointment will be made shortly.
On the need for accommodation, the vacated Magee Barracks, Kildare, is now providing accommodation for asylum seekers. I have also agreed to provide circa one acre to the local authority for a temporary halting site for 20 persons for a period of one year. In relation to the remainder of this site, I am arranging early discussions with all the interested parties including the local authority.
Clancy Barracks, Dublin, was advertised by the selling agents, Hamilton Osborne King, for sale by public tender on 14 June 2001. Two bids were received one of which was from Dublin City Council. Both tenders were considered too low to permit acceptance. My Department is, of course, prepared to talk to any party interested in purchasing the property which remains on the market and in this regard ongoing discussions are taking place with officials of the Department of the Environment and Local Government and Dublin City Council. It is my intention to generate the maximum return from the site for re-investment in essential Defence Forces needs.
Arising from the temporary provision of accommodation for asylum seekers the cost of security at Magee barracks, Kildare, is now met by the Office of Public Works and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Castleblayney Military Barracks was transferred to the North-Eastern Health Board on a caretaker basis on 9 February 2000 and the former Fitzgerald Camp in Fermoy has been sold to Cork County Council and no further costs will fall to be met by my Department in relation to either of these properties.
The total expenditure in relation to the former barracks since closure now stands at €2,060,984, £1,623,157. The total costs include expenditure on security, utilities, maintenance, advertising, etc. Significant savings have arisen since the evacuation of the six barracks placed under private security arrangements. On military security duty alone, it is estimated that savings to date exceed €1,422,107, £1,120,000. In addition there have been significant savings on utility costs, such as telephone, gas and electricity charges at each of the evacuated barracks which, for example, would have amounted to approximately €230,765, £181,742, in the case of Murphy Barracks, Ballincollig.