Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 119: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform when, with respect to the dedicated road to the site of the proposed new prison at Thornton Hall, the route of the new road was decided and by whom; the person from whom the land needed for the new road was purchased; the cost of same; when the purchases were commenced and completed; the amount of land involved; if a company (details supplied) was one of the vendors; the person from whom his Department purchased the land on which it is seeking to build the new Forensic Science Laboratory, the Garda Technical Bureau and a new garda station adjacent to the proposed Thornton Hall development; the amount of land and public money that is involved in these purchases; the tendering procedures that were involved in the procurement process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42001/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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While the existing R130 road to the Thornton Hall site was deemed to be technically adequate, the major concern expressed by local residents at meetings was the danger that would be posed to children at the local national school by both construction and operating traffic on the road to the prison site as well as the nuisance and annoyance such traffic would cause to local residents. Following meetings with the various local groups the then Tánaiste advised that while he was satisfied that the existing route was adequate, in the light of concerns expressed, he was willing to consider an alternative route provided the necessary land was offered to him at a cost less per acre than that already paid for the site at Thornton. An alternative access route required a corridor of land from the nearest main road (R135 then the N2) to the Thornton Hall site.

Towards the end of 2006 the Irish Prison Service was approached by a representative of Korado Ltd which had recently bought land in the area. A technical examination was carried out and the advice was that a corridor comprising 8.8 acres across the lands of Korado Ltd and the Pierce family (who had previously offered land for sale) would provide a cost effective dedicated access route. The exact route was determined on the basis of civil engineering requirements and the willingness of the landowners to sell the relevant portion. The necessary land (circa 3.3 acres from Korado Limited at a cost of €495,000 and circa 5.4 acres from the Pierce family at a cost of €810,000) was purchased in 2007 for a total of €1,300,000 or approximately €150,000 an acre. The acquisitions met the procurement requirements for such purchases and an independent valuation of the land was obtained prior to purchase. I am not in a position to comment on the beneficial ownership of Korado Ltd.

In relation to the other issues raised by the Deputy, the landowners adjacent to the Thornton Hall site (Pierce family) had indicated that further land might be available for sale. The Department were looking for a secure location for a number of other Justice projects and having a prison with 24 hour/seven day security immediately adjacent offered certain security advantages. A decision was made to purchase a further 6.3 acres for approximately €900,000 because of its proximity to the prison site and the new access route.