€750,000 spent on land for Laois Court without a business case
Laois TD Brian Stanley ask Minister Jim O’Callaghan for update on Portlaoise Courthouse
Three quarters of a million euro of public money was spent buying a site for a new courthouse for Laois in Portlaoise before a Strategic Assessment and Preliminary Business Case was prepared, according to a Dáil answer from the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O'Callaghan.
Independent Republican TD Brian Stanley asked a Parliamentary Question to the Minister for Justice, about the he status of the provision of a new courthouse in Portlaoise the stage is it currently at and the progress made to date.
In his written reply, the Minister confirmed that the Courts Service purchased a site for a new Portlaoise courthouse at Kylekiproe (just off James Fintan Lalor Avenue / near the Southern Circular Road) in 2020. This price has previously been stated as being €750,000.
He also confirmed that the money was spent without a detailed case being made in writing to support the need for a new building to replace the current building on Main Street.
“The Courts Service has received an initial funding allocation under the revised National Development Plan to support the advancement of a courthouse project in several areas, including Portlaoise. This funding will facilitate the preparatory work required to develop a robust business case and evaluate the options necessary to inform future decisions regarding courthouse accommodation.
“I am advised that a design team has been appointed to prepare the Strategic Assessment and Preliminary Business Case for the proposed project. This work is being undertaken in accordance with the Infrastructure Guidelines and will define the scope, scale and requirements of the project, while assessing its feasibility, affordability and value for money.
“The Preliminary Business Case will examine both current and future operational requirements and identify the accommodation needed to support the effective delivery of court services in Portlaoise into the future. The assessment will provide the evidence base necessary to inform the next stage of project development and decision making,” he said.
In a statement to the Leinster Express / Laois Live, the Laois TD insisted that a new building is needed.
“Having an office in Church Street at the rear of the Court House, I can see it causing huge disruption to local businesses. Prison vans and Garda vehicles have to park on the street. The new Court House needs to be funded,” he said.
It also previously emerged that the court building would be modelled on a courthouse in Letterkenny, which cost nearly €20 million.
The state-of-the-art modern courthouse features four fully digital courtrooms, video conferencing suites, and improved victim support areas.
It has also been reported that the former Donegall courthouse, which sat vacant following the move, is being transformed into a regional tourism, community, and cultural hub. This ongoing heritage regeneration project has been allocated €7 million in co-funding from the Irish Government and the European Union under the THRIVE scheme