Neasa Hourigan (Dublin Central, Green Party)
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245. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the year the lands at a site (details supplied) were acquired by the State; the year the archaeological dig finished on the site; the annual rent being paid by the current occupiers of the lands; his plans for the future use of the lands; the current stage of planning; and the anticipated year of completion. [11728/21]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland (CPW) acquired/assembled a development site at Hammond Lane, Dublin 8, over a number of years. The property referred to by the deputy was acquired in 1999. The purpose of this acquisition was to facilitate the development of a Family Court complex and office accommodation for the Court Service.

The site has been archaeologically examined and a report was completed in 2008.

In April 2019, the OPW was approached by the developers of an adjoining site to request the temporary use of the site as a building compound. In October 2019, the Commissioners entered into a licence agreement with the contractor for a period of 1 year with 2 possible extensions of 6 months each permitted. A licence fee of €50,000 was payable for the duration of the licence.

In relation to the future use of the site, I understand that my colleague Helen McEntee, Minister for Justice and Equality last year provided for funding to cover ongoing preparatory work for the Family Court complex. In that regard, architects in my Department have been engaging with the Courts Service on the design of that facility and a business case is currently being prepared on behalf of the Department of Justice in line with the public spending code.