Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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518. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the status of the works being carried out at the Magazine Fort in the Phoenix Park; and the timeline for completion and its opening as a visitor site. [24487/25]

Kevin Moran (Longford-Westmeath, Independent)
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The Office of Public Works (OPW) submitted plans to Dublin City Council in Oct 2021 to restore and upgrade the historic Magazine Fort. The works encompass the conservation and stabilisation of the historic fort and the improvement of visitor facilities at the site to enable the OPW to better present this significant military building to the public. Planning permission was granted by Dublin City Council in August 2022.

The OPW tendered for a programme of initial conservation works and the main contractor for these works was appointed in May 2023.

These works currently on site constitute Phase 1 of the works that will be required at the fort.

The main fort rampart walls constructed in 1736, the Gunpowder Store buildings built between 1736 and 1758, the 1921 ‘Bakery’ building, which was used to produce weapon ammunition and grenades during the Emergency, have been carefully conserved. The Duke of Dorset Gateway from 1736, which was the original entrance point to the inner Fort, is currently being reinstated. This first phase of stabilisation and repair works is nearing completion and it is anticipated that the site will be handed back to the OPW in June 2025.

The OPW invited members of the public to partake in organised tours of the Magazine Fort as part of Heritage week 2024 and recently invited secondary school students to the Magazine Fort as part of a STEM in construction and conservation craft skills outreach day.

It is planned that guided tours for the public will be provided during the summer 2025 to showcase the conservation work undertaken within the Fort to date. The date and times for these guided tours will be published on social media and on heritageireland.ie in due course.