Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 October 2004
33 Mr. Connolly asked the Minister for Finance the progress made in the acquisition of premises, sites and facilities for the proposed decentralisation of the various Departments to the relevant centres throughout the country; and the estimated costs entailed in such acquisitions. [24585/04]
View answerThe Office of Public Works received in excess of 700 proposed property solutions for the programme. Detailed evaluation of the proposals was undertaken and the OPW has made significant progress in sourcing possible sites at the locations concerned.
To date, eight property solutions have been agreed in principle and a further 20 are at an advanced stage in the acquisition process. The balance of the sites will be pursued over the coming months. A broad range of factors will influence the cost of acquiring sites and these include: proximity of the site to commercial, leisure and educational facilities; proximity to public transport; access to and from a good quality road network; and zoning for development.
The prevailing property market conditions in each geographical area will also have a significant bearing on the cost of acquiring sites. In the circumstances, and taking into account that the acquisition process is still in progress, it is not possible to provide an estimate of the cost of the site acquisition programme.
