I understand from my officials that the Debtors’ Prison was built in 1794 by Dublin Corporation. It is located between Halston Street and Green Street close to Smithfield Market with its entrance on Halston Street. It was originally known as the Sherriff’s Prison and ceased to function as a prison in the mid-nineteenth century. It was used as a cholera hospital for a short period of time.
In 1867, the Debtors’ Prison was transferred to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland (CPW) and converted into a barracks for the Dublin Metropolitan Police, and subsequently became a Garda Station. An Garda Síochána vacated the property in 1962; and in 1963 it was handed back to the CPW for the use of the Office of Public Works (OPW).
The Debtors’ Prison was licenced to Dublin Corporation for emergency housing and was used by the Corporation for housing until it terminated the arrangement in 1987.
In 1992, the Commissioners granted a 99-year lease to the Green Street Trust. The aim of the Trust was to promote urban renewal in disadvantaged areas through the rehabilitation of historic buildings for contemporary uses. The Trust’s plan for the Debtors’ Prison was to convert it into apartments to provide social housing. During this time, major works were carried out to the roof, windows and external structure and significant progress was made to the interior fit out. However, due to difficulties with Trust funding for the project, the works ceased and the lease was surrendered to the Commissioners in 2006.
Over the years, the OPW has consulted widely on a potential use for this historic property. The bodies consulted or who expressed an interest in the property include Dublin City Council, The Arts Council of Ireland, the founder of Fumbally Exchange (a not-for-profit movement of creative and innovative professionals who share co-working spaces), local small gallery owners, Sage Advocacy, the Design Tower, UCD School of Architecture, Dublin Institute of Technology, the EU Turas Project and former members of the Green Street Trust.
The possible future uses identified for the Debtors’ Prison were
1. Office Accommodation for the Civil Service
2. Commercial Office Accommodation leased to a Third Party
3. Artists’ Studios
4. Film Location
5. Transfer to another State Agency
6. Disposal on the open market
Each of these possible uses were examined and found to have some merits. However, substantial investment was required to bring the property up to a safe standard for use. This investment would have included mechanical, electrical, and related installations including the provision of a heating system, works to provide for universal access and works to meet fire safety standards in addition to all works to make the building compliant with current building regulations.
In mid-2017, the Peter Mc Verry Trust (PMVT) approached the OPW to open discussions regarding the possibility of the Debtors’ Prison being made available to them for uses as accommodation for the homeless. In early 2018, following confirmation that the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government had approved funding, the OPW approached Dublin City Council (DCC) to offer the property for sale, for use by the PMVT, under Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (D/PER) Circular 11/15: Protocols for the Transfer and Sharing of State Property Assets.
In May 2018, the PMVT informed the OPW that DCC did not intend to proceed with acquiring the property for them, as the Council did not feel that the proposal was viable.
Later in 2018, the OPW approached the Courts Service as the adjoining property owner to establish if they required the property. The Courts Service advised that they had no requirement for the property, particularly due to the level of investment that would be needed.
In the intervening period, a number of organisations have expressed an interest in acquiring the property under licence/lease. The uses included; artists’ studios, performance space, employment support service and advocacy service. These proposals have not been pursued by the relevant parties due to the substantial costs to a protected structure that would amount to several million euro.
In March 2019, the OPW and DCC jointly inspected the property and in December 2019 negotiations on the transfer of the property commenced. In February 2020, the OPW informed DCC that the transfer of the property to DCC would be under D/PER Circular 11/15: Protocols for the Transfer and Sharing of State Property Assets and in April 2020 DCC informed the OPW that the Council no longer wished to acquire the property.
The policy of the Office of Public Works with regard to vacant properties and sites is to:
1. Identify if the property is required for alternative State use by Government departments or the wider public sector.
2. If there is no other State use identified for a property, the OPW will then consider disposing of the property on the open market, if and when conditions prevail, in order to generate revenue for the Exchequer.
3. If no State requirement is identified or if a decision is taken not to dispose of a particular property, the OPW may consider community involvement subject to detailed written submission which would indicate that the community/voluntary group has the means to insure, maintain and manage the property and that there are no ongoing costs for the Exchequer.
I am advised by the Commissioners of Public Works that the OPW continues to work with State Agencies to identify a future use for the Debtors’ Prison and in the interim, the OPW continues to facilitate the film industry in the use of the property as a film location.
