Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 25 September 2014
96. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the total moneys spent to date by the Industrial Development Agency Ireland on a property (details supplied) in County Mayo; the reason there has been no development on the site; if the site was considered as part of the IDA capital plan for 2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36368/14]
View answerI am informed by IDA Ireland that since 2008, the Agency owns c.11 hectares (c.28 acres) of industrial zoned land on the Sligo Road, Ballina, Co. Mayo.
IDA Ireland carried out limited site treatment works on the site in 2010. These works involved some limited boundary fencing, cultivation, planting and general low level landscaping focusing on the site boundaries. The total expenditure on these works, which also included the demolition and environmental disposal of materials relating to a former derelict house, was in the region of €60,000 excluding VAT.
The IDA Ireland lands are concept master planned and planning permission has been obtained.
IDA Ireland provides property solutions to potential client of both IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland client companies, but while IDA Ireland seeks to influence the selection of location, the final decision on where a company visits and invests in is made by the company in a location that best meets its requirements.
In relation to property construction, IDA Ireland policy is to pursue public/private partnerships, where possible. In 2014, as in the past number of years, the private sector, in many locations, has been unable to deliver appropriate property solutions to meet the needs of foreign direct investment (both existing and new), IDA Ireland has intervened and is currently constructing a 2,674m2 manufacturing building in Waterford and in Athlone. A private developer is constructing a 2,000m2 office building on IDA Ireland’s Park in Letterkenny.
In the current economic climate coupled with the limited availability of funding for all capital projects, investment must be targeted to potential investment wins and associated job creation opportunities. IDA Ireland has assured me that it will continue to assess the requirements in other regional locations on an ongoing basis.
I should like to remind the Deputy that 2014 was a good year for Ballina with Hollister announcing in June last a major expansion project with an investment of €65m and the creation of an additional 250 new jobs at their premises in Ballina.
