Latest news with #SouthDublinCountyCouncil
Irish Independent
25-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Council leisure centre's swimming pool project takes on water – as costs of eight-year project set to rise to €20m
The pool facility, in Lucan in west Dublin, has been dogged by delays — and the final price of the project is now expected to come in at around €20m. When it was originally costed in 2017, South Dublin County Council expected the final bill to be around €12.985m. A project schedule from the time said that once the contract was awarded, it should only take 14 months to construct. Construction got under way in May 2019, but the Covid pandemic, severe weather and a variety of other issues have seen the project go way beyond schedule, with completion dates pushed back at least a dozen times. A series of updates to queries from councillors, released under the Freedom of Information Act, show how the opening day for the swimming pool and leisure centre kept shifting. In late 2020, a local representative was told the handover date had been meant to be February 2021, but that this had been moved back to June 2021. I'm satisfied the council has done everything in their power to expedite the project An update said: 'The project has been significantly delayed due firstly to poor weather conditions in the early part of 2020 and then the enforced closure of the site for a number of weeks during the Covid national lockdown.' In late 2021, another councillor was given an update, saying the completion date was now likely to be in April or May of 2022. That date then got pushed to August 2022, though even that proved hopelessly optimistic. Local Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin asked in January 2023 when the pool was likely to be open and was told that June 2023 was now the target, and that this was 'very disappointing' to the council. A letter to him said: 'As you will be aware, the project has been impacted significantly by various construction sector challenges.' By last year, the project still wasn't complete — and in August 2024 councillors were told that the local authority was still working with the contractor to 'agree a revised programme'. ADVERTISEMENT In February of this year, Mr Ó Broin again sought an update and was told more resources were being provided to 'expedite project completion'. A letter to him said: 'The council understands both the importance of this project to the local community and the frustration that the delays have caused.' An update to councillors in January said: 'Completion of the project continues to be challenging, primarily; as noted previously, due to contractor resources and sub-contractor availability. 'We are continuing to intensively manage the project and main contractor to achieve the earliest possible completion dates.' South Dublin County Council had originally refused to provide details of how much they had so far spent on the project. However, following an appeal under FoI laws, they disclosed that costs so far were €17.87m, which included €15.7m in payments to the main contractor. A further €702,000 was paid to an architectural firm while fees of €33,919 were paid to Irish Water and just over €20,000 to ESB Networks. That is unlikely to be the final bill, however, and local representatives have been warned that an overall cost of around €20m can be expected. Parts of the facility are in use, but the main swimming pool has yet to be opened to the public. 'The ongoing delays have been enormously frustrating, but I'm satisfied that the council has done everything in their power to expedite the project,' said Mr Ó Broin. 'What I would say is the way in which procurement rules are imposed on local bodies is far too rigid. It means that when something goes wrong, it's very difficult to resolve those issues in a timely manner. 'The council has done a large number of capital projects, including housing and community facilities, and none of those have had the kind of delays that this centre has.'
The Irish Sun
24-05-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Local swimming pool almost €5m over budget after ‘frustrating' 6-year project delay pain & new €20m final bill warning
A COMMUNITY swimming pool that was expected to cost less than €13 million has already cost nearly €18 million and even though construction began in 2019, it is still not open. The pool facility in Lucan in West Advertisement 4 Sinn Fein TD Eoin O Broin SAID ongoing delays have been 'enormously frustrating' Credit: Damien Storan/PA Wire 4 The Aura Lucan Leisure Campus is expected to open later this summer Credit: PR Handout image When it was originally costed in 2017, South Dublin County Council expected the final bill to be around €12.985 million. A project schedule from the time said that once the contract was awarded, it should only take fourteen months to construct. However, the A series of updates to queries from councillors show how the opening day for the swimming pool and leisure centre kept shifting. Advertisement READ MORE IRISH NEWS In late 2020, a local representative was told the handover date was meant to be February 2021, but that this had been moved back to June 2021. An update said: 'The project has been significantly delayed due firstly to poor weather conditions in the early part of 2020 and then the enforced closure of the site for a number of weeks during the COVID-19 In late 2021, another councillor was given an update saying the completion date was now likely to be in April or May of 2022. That date then got pushed to August 2022 though even that proved hopelessly optimistic. Advertisement Most read in Irish News Local Why Bright Swimsuits Can Save Your Kids' Lives A letter to him said: 'As you will be aware the project has been impacted significantly by various construction sector challenges.' By last year, the project still wasn't complete with councillors told in August 2024 that the local authority was still working with the contractor to 'agree a revised programme.' In February of this year, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin again sought an update and was told more resources were being provided to 'expedite project completion.' Advertisement South Dublin County Council had originally refused to provide details of how much they had so far spent on the project. However, following an appeal under FOI laws, they disclosed that costs so far were €17.87 million, which included €15.7 million in payments to the main contractor. 'ENORMOUSLY FRUSTRATING' That is unlikely to be the final bill though, and local representatives have been warned that an overall cost of around €20 million can be expected. Parts of the facility are in use, but the main swimming pool has yet to be opened to the public. Advertisement Ó Broin said: 'The ongoing delays have been enormously frustrating, but I'm satisfied that the council have done everything in their power to expedite the project. 'What I would say is the way in which procurement rules are imposed on local bodies is far too rigid. It means that when something goes wrong, it's very difficult to resolve those issues in a timely manner. 'The council has done a large number of capital projects, including housing and community facilities, and none of those have had the kind of delays that this centre has.' Asked about the project, South Dublin County Council said that the original contract price for the building, including VAT, was €13.5 million. Advertisement They said significant construction price index inflation had taken place since then leading to a higher cost. The council said delays in the project were regrettable but that they looked forward to the imminent handover of the gym and fitness studios later this summer. 4 Construction began on the state-of-the-art family friendly leisure centre in 2019 Credit: PR Handout image 4 The final cost of the project is now expected to rise to around €20 million. Credit: PR Handout image Advertisement
Irish Post
23-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Post
London borough celebrates Irish connections as Councillor Ryan Hack becomes youngest ever Mayor
COUNCILLOR Ryan Hack has been elected as the new Mayor of Brent, becoming the borough's First Citizen at the Council's annual general meeting held earlier this month. At 26, Cllr Hack is the youngest mayor in Brent's history. Because of the extent of its Irish population, this area of northwest London - which is surrounded by Kilburn, Cricklewood, and Willesden - has often been referred to as the 33rd county of Ireland. Since 1977 Brent has been twinned with South Dublin County Council in Ireland. This twinning arrangement was established in 1997 and is based on shared geographical and historical connections. Mayor of Brent, Councillor Ryan Hack In 1970, Cllr Hack's grandparents had big dreams and emigrated from Mallow, County Cork, before eventually settling in Willesden. In his maiden mayoral speech, Cllr Hack expressed his gratitude, 'for the blessing of [his] Irish heritage,' and vowed to champion and celebrate 'Brent's diversity and community'. One of Cllr Hack's notable achievements was organising the first Multicultural St. Patrick's Day Celebration in Brent this year, sharing Montserrat's deep connection to both African and Irish traditions. He plans to host a Mayoral St. Patrick's Day Celebration during his tenure as mayor to honour Irish culture and unite people from all walks of life. Cllr Hack was the first person from his family to attend university and graduate with a Master's Degree from University College London. His first summertime work placement was stacking shelves in Irish-owned MP Moran Builders Merchants in Willesden, one of London's leading hardware stores. Ever since being elected as a councillor, Cllr Hack has used his platform to coordinate and campaign to improve residents' access to healthy food – mostly in areas of deprivation – by opening or supporting community kitchens as well as surplus food markets. As mayor, Cllr Hack will be supporting the Brent Irish Advisory Service (BIAS), which strives to improve the health and well-being of the Irish community across North London and beyond. BIAS was set up in 1978 as a response to the welfare needs of the Irish community, one of the largest immigrant communities in London. Mike McGing CEO said: 'It's great to have an Irish mayor once again providing a voice for the often over looked Irish Community and we look forward to working with Cllr Hack over the next year.'
The Journal
19-05-2025
- The Journal
'A huge relief': Man who feared fine or jail time over insulation added to house receives planning permission
A MAN WHO was threatened with jail or a €5,000 fine for retrofitting his home has been granted retrospective planning permission. Clive Ryan had put new insulation in the wall at the front of his home in Kilnamanagh in the Ballymount area of Dublin in 2018. Earlier this year , he received a letter from South Dublin County Council telling him that he had to 'cease and discontinue the use of the insulation' and to 'remove the insulation and, in so far as is practicable, reinstate the facade to its condition prior to the commencement of the development'. Otherwise, under the terms of the Planning and Development Act 2000, he could face a fine which can reach up to €5,000, or even a jail term for up to six months. He had received a grant worth more than €4,000 to help pay for the costs from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland. The other €13,000 came from his own pocket. 'Huge relief' With the help of councillors, Ryan applied for planning permission, which has since been granted. He said it's a 'huge relief'. Ryan believes the publicity around his case, as well as the support of local representatives, ultimately helped him. 'We tried ourselves and I don't think we would've got any further with it … I was down an avenue I'd never been.' Advertisement Ryan says, despite the arduous process to get planning permission, he still recommends people retrofit their homes. 'I think it's brilliant,' he said. 'It brought down our bills significantly.' When Ryan spoke to The Journal in March, he said he found the case 'baffling', explaining that while the insulation expanded the facade of the house, it is not visible when looking at the home. 'It probably moves the house forward a few inches – that's what the insulation does. But that's the only logical thing I can come up with. 'The rest of the house is done like every other house. The insulation is just around the window. It's not a new structure, we tried to finish it as neat and as clean as we could.' While some forms of insulation and solar panels are exempt from planning permission, the situation with insulation for external walls is not so cut and dried. The Green Party is calling on the government to introduce further planning exemptions. 'It's hard enough for people to take time out of their busy lives to begin the process of a home retrofit. Government, including local councils, should be making it as easy as possible,' a spokesperson said. As well as the planning exemption, Green Party want specific grants tailored for neighbours to retrofit together, to speed up retrofitting around the country and lower household energy bills. Mark Lynch, a Green Party councillor for the Rathfarnham-Templeogue area said it needs to be made 'as easy as possible' for people to retrofit their homes. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
BreakingNews.ie
12-05-2025
- BreakingNews.ie
Four local authorities spending over €500k per year to remove graffiti
Four local authorities are spending more than €500,000-per-year cleaning up graffiti with hundreds of offensive, racist, and homophobic incidents reported. The councils of Dublin collectively spent €1.026 million on clean-up operations in 2023 and 2024 after over 4,600 incidents involving spray painting, tagging, and messages targeting minorities. Advertisement Dublin City Council had the largest bill by far and paid €700,000 removing graffiti following 2,330 reports made to them by the public. The council said that of those incidents, 923 were reported to be 'offensive, political [or] racist.' Dublin City Council said there was no specific category for the reporting of racist or homophobic graffiti, so it was not possible to give precise figures in each category. They said: 'Rather, members of the public are asked at time of reporting to indicate if the graffiti is offensive, political [or] racist.' Advertisement Dublin City Council said their policy was to remove offensive material within 48 hours with non-offensive material removed on a scheduled basis. The council said: 'While some of the removal works are carried out by [our] operational staff, external contractors are also regularly and routinely engaged.' The local authority added that where graffiti was on private property, it was generally the owner's responsibility to have it dealt with. South Dublin County Council said they had paid out around €171,000 for removal operations over the past two years, with a sharp rise in spending in 2024. Advertisement The council said there were 475 reports of graffiti made to them with 31 of them either racist or targeted at the LGBQT community. They said it was probable the figure was higher as not all reports were specifically categorised when they were received. The local authority said around €65,500 was spent on direct clean-up in 2023 with a further €5,500 in staff costs. In 2024, they put in place a specialist contract for graffiti removal which brought overall costs for the year to around €100,000. Advertisement Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council said they had spent around €93,000 on removal operations over the past two years. They said there were 1,219 separate incidents of graffiti reported to them, of which 27 were specifically racist or homophobic. Fingal County Council had the lowest bill of the four local authorities in Dublin and spent just over €60,000 during 2023 and 2024. They said this had covered the cost of dealing with 615 separate incidents of graffiti, of which 33 were racist or homophobic in nature. The council said they also worked closely with the Probation Service who provided a scheme for all the local authorities in Dublin for removal of graffiti on public property. They said: 'A list of locations, as reported or identified by council staff or members of the public are provided to the [Probation] Service and are actioned by them for removal. 'Graffiti on private property that fronts onto a public open space [or the] public road is also included in this service pending the signing of a waiver by the property owner.'
