Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 6 July 2023
199. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform if, following an audit of all unoccupied properties previously used either to provide accommodation to members of An Garda Síochána or former Garda stations no longer in use, he will set out the number of these unoccupied properties which have been sold to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33291/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Office of Public Works (OPW) has responsibility on behalf of the State for managing and maintaining a substantial and complex estate of approximately 2,500 properties.
This extensive and diverse portfolio of State properties includes office accommodation for all Government Departments, the property estate for An Garda Síochána and numerous properties for many State Agencies. The portfolio also encompasses specialised spaces such as public offices, laboratories and cultural institutions, in addition to warehouses, heritage properties, visitor centres and sites.
In any major portfolio, there will always be a certain level of vacant properties. It is normal to have an amount of space vacant, or vacant properties, at any given time as the portfolio could not function without the flexibility that it provides. Not all vacant properties will be deemed surplus to the State’s requirements or deemed suitable for disposal.
The OPW, like other State bodies, is obliged to follow central Government policies on the disposal of surplus properties including former Garda station properties. The arrangements involved are set out in the following Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) Circulars:
• Circular 11/2015: Protocols for the Transfer and Sharing of State Property Assets
• Circular 17/2016: Policy for Property Acquisition and for Disposal of Surplus Property
As a matter of policy, no property is disposed of until there is absolute certainty that there is no alternative State use for that property.
The OPW’s approach to managing vacant, surplus properties is firstly, to establish if the property is required for alternative State use, including the potential for it to be re-purposed for either Government Departments or the wider public service. A number of strategic properties are retained in anticipation of potential State use/development in line with service demands arising from Government policy changes to public service provision.
Secondly, if no State use is identified, the OPW considers if open market disposal is an option, depending on prevailing market conditions.
Thirdly, the OPW may consider community involvement, subject to a detailed submission that demonstrates that the community or voluntary group seeking to use the property has the means to insure, maintain and manage it in order to reduce costs to the Exchequer.
In line with the above policy, the OPW has provided a list of its surplus properties, including former Garda station properties, to the Land Development Agency, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, and the relevant Local Authorities so that they could assess them for suitability for social or humanitarian housing purposes or for other State use.
139 Garda station properties were closed during 2012 and 2013 as part of An Garda Síochána’s rationalisation programme. The overall status with regard to these 139 Garda station properties is outlined in the table below including a list of 59 that were disposed on the open market or transferred to other State bodies/local authorities.
