Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Office of the Ceann Comhairle for affording me this further opportunity to raise the issue of the development of the town centre in Naas, County Kildare, which has been stalled for approximately ten years. Suffice it to say that many gallons of water have passed under many bridges since I first raised this issue. I was initially informed that it was about to be resolved. A great deal of work has been done with a view to bringing the issue to a conclusion. The reason it has taken up so much of our time is that it was a landmark site in the centre of the town. For many of the ten years in question, we had two cranes hanging over the town like two albatrosses waiting for something to happen. Thankfully, the cranes were removed in the past few months and at least that part of the problem - the constant reminder of what needed to be done - is gone. I know that considerable work is going on all the time and that all public representatives have tried to ensure that the matter is expedited.

The Minister with responsibility in this area is unable to be here tonight but I hope he has been able to supply his stand-in with more information for us. I am informed that there is information available locally. I have been involved in attempting to push the issue further along and to bring it to a position whereby we can say as we approach a new year that at last we have put that behind us and can welcome the new year on the grounds that we have turned a new leaf and can see rapid progress taking place. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to reply. I would hope that the niggling outstanding issues such as rights of way, way-leaves and arbitration have been resolved. If they have not, they should be. There is no excuse for somebody attempting to tell me in six or eight months that we are still waiting for a resolution in that area and that maybe the property in question should be sold on with a flawed title. The answer to that is "No". Enough time has passed and enough interest has been expressed in the issue to facilitate a satisfactory conclusion and a hopeful turn as we await the new year.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. He has raised it repeatedly in the House over the past couple of years, and rightly so. It is very important that the Naas town centre development be progressed. Naas town centre is a vital piece of infrastructure serving the region. It is important that we have a very attractive town that functions well and can provide services to the growing population of the area. I recognise Deputy Durkan's drive and his eagerness to see this long-standing issue relating to this development being brought to a satisfactory resolution. The Deputy has been constantly pushing and raising this matter both formally in the Chamber and also in meetings with myself and other Ministers and officials. He is taking a leading role in having it resolved. I understand this is the third or fourth time we are discussing it here in a formal capacity.

Aas I have mentioned in previous debates on the issue, however, the management of the stalled development is a matter mainly for Kildare County Council in the first instance, although certainly my Department officials have been in a supportive role and have helped where called upon in the attempts to resolve this. Furthermore, with processes under way involving both NAMA and arbitration, it would be entirely inappropriate for either the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government or me as a Minister of State become involved directly in this issue. It would not be appropriate for any Minister in the Department with responsibility for planning matters to make representations on this issue, as Deputy Durkan understands, because under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act, the Minister is precluded from exercising any power or control in respect of any particular case with which a planning authority or An Bord Pleanála is or may be involved, except in very specific and extreme circumstances which do not apply in this case, as Kildare County Council is trying to work through this.

The Deputy is well aware that the hearing of evidence in the High Court in regard to a land title issue on Corban’s Lane, which adjoins the proposed Town Centre, was completed earlier this year and that the relevant judgment is now awaited. Consequently, the arbitration hearing on the land involved cannot recommence until the High Court land title case is resolved. Nevertheless, I am informed that Kildare County Council continues to engage in advanced discussions with NAMA and the receivers in an attempt to ensure that a satisfactory sale of the site in question will come about In this regard, the council has confirmed that it will brief all relevant Oireachtas and municipal district members as soon as there is progress to report. Hopefully, that will be very soon.

As has been outlined to the House in previous parliamentary debates on this topic, subject to a satisfactory planning approval there is no impediment to the appropriate development of the site once the legal issues have been resolved. Kildare County Council fully acknowledges and recognises the strategic importance of the site in the heart of Naas town and continues to support and work in partnership with any stakeholders involved in the site. It is right that they take that leading role. In the past couple of years, the council has initiated and supported a number of projects with the strategic objective of ensuring that the social and economic development of Naas is protected and enhanced. This work is underpinned by the work of the Naas roads and transport steering group, the URBACT group and the Naas regeneration group.

Kildare County Council has also received approval from the National Transport Authority to prepare a traffic management study for Naas, which will form one element of a strategic social and economic plan for Naas and will be instrumental in ensuring good access to the town centre development when it is eventually progressed and completed, which I hope will be very soon.

While I know that the Deputy is utterly frustrated by the length of time it is taking to get this matter resolved arising from the various High Court and arbitration deliberations, I can assure him that the local authority is doing all it can within the parameters of its role and having regard to the difficult circumstances faced. In this connection, we must recognise the due processes that are necessary in respect of the receivership, etc., but I am very hopeful that the relevant issues will be resolved in due course to facilitate the completion of this strategic Naas town centre site.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State's response. It gives me hope. The only thing that worries me is that one can say "Live horse and you will get grass" in many of these situations. We have done this before. A major issue was to get an anchor tenant to suit the location and a great deal of work has been done on that. It is to be hoped that has concluded satisfactorily at this stage. It should be. I am a little concerned that we still have two outstanding matters, one in respect of arbitration and the other in respect of the High Court, each of which can affect the other. It is very frustrating to find after two, three, four or five years that we are still addressing the issue that was the kernel of the problem initially. It is no harm to point out that Naas was and is a very busy and important trading town in the province of Leinster, drawing in a population from a wide catchment area.

I know the Minister of State is aware of this. It is a major blow to any town to have a derelict or semi-derelict site right in the middle of it because it gives of a bad impression. It automatically makes one wonder why something is not happening about this. I raised this question previously and I know the Minister of State is conscious that it is time to do something about it. I have raised it once again at this stage in the sincere hope that we do not have to come back to the issue any time soon and that there will be some breakthrough as a result of which we will see action so that at long last the issue that has damned the area for so long will be resolved.

I cannot understand why issues of that nature hold up a major development for so long. I believe we need legislative changes to ensure those kinds of things do not happen in the future. They do not happen anywhere else and should not happen in this country. Notwithstanding that, I am hopeful that what the Minister of State has said tonight will bear fruit in the very near future.

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I fully accept the Deputy’s desire that this long-running matter, which is an unfortunate legacy of our recent economic recession and is impacting on the further development of Naas, should be progressed and completed as soon as is practicably possible so that the ever-expanding town of Naas can achieve its full potential. Under Project Ireland 2040 we have set out high ambition for Naas. I know that Kildare County Council and Deputy Durkan have ambitions for Naas and we want it to be able to achieve that. Naas is a very important urban settlement in the context of the greater Dublin area and as such has been identified as a key town in the draft regional strategy for the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly area.

As I indicated earlier, it would be inappropriate for the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, or I to become involved or to make any further comment on the town centre development while a number of processes are ongoing. In any event, as I have already outlined, the law precludes us from becoming involved in specific planning cases. I do not have a role in the specifics of the arbitration process either.

As the Deputy will be aware, when a State authority compulsorily acquires land for public purposes and there is a dispute between the vendor and the purchaser regarding the amount of compensation which should be paid, the vendor can apply to the Land Values Reference Committee for the appointment of a property arbitrator to arbitrate on the amount to be paid. Property arbitrators are appointed under the Property Values (Arbitration and Appeals) Act 1960 by the Land Values Reference Committee and all property arbitrations are required by law to be held in public.

The appointment of property arbitrators is a matter for the Land Values Reference Committee. However, I do understand the frustration of Deputy Durkan regarding the arbitration-related delays that have been encountered with this project.

Kildare County Council continues to engage in advanced discussions with NAMA and the receiver in an attempt to secure a satisfactory sale of the site in question. I am hopeful that there will be a speedy and positive resolution of the issue in the near future once the outstanding legal issues have been finally resolved.

The Deputy is right. We certainly do not want to have prominent derelict sites like this. They do not help in trying to drive forward a town. They serve to remind us of a past - albeit quite recent - from which most people want to move on. Such derelict sites bring many other difficulties. Through Project Ireland 2040 funds have been provided to allow local authorities take a lead in tackling dereliction and vacancy. In many cases it is dereliction of commercial and retail property, but it may apply to properties that could be available for housing projects as well. We are urging local authorities to take a lead role in this. Kildare County Council has taken on board that message. There are various avenues of funding to help move that forward.

As Minister of State with responsibility for urban development, I want to tackle dereliction. We will strengthen the powers of local authorities to be able to deal with this in many cases. I urge them to continue their leading role.