Following an application by the developer of the Priory Hall complex for Floor Area Compliance Certificates (FACC) as introduced by section 72 of the 2004 Finance Act, my Department assigned an inspector to process the application. My Department's inspector initially wrote to the developer in 26 May 2006 seeking a certificate of compliance with Planning Permission and Building Regulations, a certificate of compliance with the Fire Safety Certificate, a Structural Engineer's Certificate for the buildings, a certificate from a competent person in relation to the installation of Trespa Sheeting in accordance with the terms of the Irish Agreement Board Certificate, a certificate from a competent person that all openings were fire stopped in accordance with Part B of the Building Regulations and the results of sound test carried out on the buildings.
On 26 June 2006 my Department's Inspector again wrote to the developer requesting design details for the timber frame infill panels used between the in situ concrete walls and design details showing compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations. This letter also recorded the absence of fire collars on pipes and inadequate insulation in roofs and walls noted during a site inspection on 14 June 2006.
On 25 October 2006 my Department's Inspector again wrote to the developer noting that he had not by that date received any response to his previous requests for information and certificates. The inspector refers again to a recent site visit where inadequate insulation was noted; he instructed that this be rectified and that the developer's Architect inspect all insulation and certify that it is complete and that all areas of cold bridging have been eliminated.
The reply to Question No. 162 of 1 March 2012 sets out the overall context in which the Department's inspector processed the FACC application and ensured that defects identified, including the absence of fire collars on pipes, were addressed.
The developer responded to the various information requests through correspondences received on a number of dates early in 2007.
My Department is not an approved certification body and has no role in relation to the validation of certificates. My Department has no correspondence with CLM Limited or with the RIAI in relation to certificates given and, as is usual in such cases, all correspondence was with the developer who had made the application.
Under the Building Control Act 1990 the onus is on the owner/developer and agents acting on their behalf to ensure compliance with the building regulations, including fire safety requirements.
In late 2008, following a complaint to Dublin Fire Brigade, Dublin City Council became concerned about fire safety issues more generally at Priory Hall and this resulted in a full investigative survey of the development which identified further and more serious concerns than had been uncovered by any previous inspection. Since that time the City Council has used the statutory powers available to it to pursue compliance with planning permission conditions and with fire safety and building standards requirements, all of which are at issue in relation to Priory Hall. Failure by the developer to honour court undertakings to remedy fire safety defects led to the latest High Court proceedings.
