Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I look forward to the Minister's response to this and to a confirmation that neither the LDA nor the Government have any intention of building homes in the Phoenix Park. I wish that the Office of Public Works would renovate some of the vacant homes in the park and make them available to be inhabited. A good number of the park lodges have been lying empty for far too long. As Senator Casey said, local authorities all over the country spend the best part of two years every five years making development plans for their counties. They take great care and interest in the management of the lands within their local authority areas. It is with that great care and interest that they make zoning decisions. There is no suggestion from this Government or the Department that any lands that have been zoned which are not zoned for housing would be built on. Phoenix Park is a UNESCO heritage site. Most of the lands are protected through zoning and other designations under planning. I look forward to the Minister confirming that. There has been much miscommunication about what the Land Development Agency will do. It would be an alarmist message if it was to go out of this House tonight that we are in any way supporting the destruction of or building on any of our heritage sites or indeed open green spaces and recreational areas, which are so valuable to us, not just here in the city but also to communities all around the country.