Update: Disposal of Decommissioned Military Installations, 26th June 2015

 QUESTION NO: 130  
 
* To ask the Minister for Defence the total receipts from disposal of decommissioned military installations disposed of over the years since 1998; the location of the various barracks or other installations involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter.  

 
Ref No: 25604/15 Proof: 143
 
 

Minister for Defence (Mr. Simon Coveney, T.D.):  

My Department has been engaged on an ongoing programme of barrack consolidation since 1998. This programme has brought to fourteen the number of barracks closed during that time.
The total receipts from disposal of installations and lands from 1998 to date amount to approx €108 million.  
 
To date the sale has been completed on nine of these barracks – Clancy (Dublin), Castleblaney, Ballincollig, Fermoy, Naas, Monaghan, Cavan, Rockhill(Letterkenny), and a large portion of Longford .
 
In relation to the remaining barracks, agreement has been reached for the sale of Lifford to Donegal County Council, Castlebar to Mayo County Council and Clonmel to Tipperary County Council. It is expected that these sales will be fully completed shortly.

The remaining part of Longford Barracks has been reserved for sale to the Office of Public Works for the local Garda Síochána.

Magee Barracks in Kildare and Columb Barracks in Mullingar remain the property of the Department of Defence. Approximately eight acres of Magee Barracks has been sold to the Department of Education to facilitate the construction of a new school and it is expected to auction the remaining portion of the barracks in 2015.

Columb Barracks in Mullingar is currently used by an Garda Síochána and the Customs Service for training purposes and a large part of the barracks has been licenced to Westmeath GAA Board for use as a potential centre of excellence. Discussions are at an advanced stage with the Board in relation to the possible long term lease of the facility.   Discussions are also ongoing with a number of other interested parties regarding future use of Mullingar.  

In addition to the barracks outlined above   ,   a number of other properties have also been identified as surplus to military requirements ov er recent years. These include married quarters, Reserve Defence Force (RDF) premises and training lands. A large number of these have already been disposed of whilst others are in the process of being prepared for disposal.