However, early in 2019 the scope of the project changed, with a new Supreme Court facility added and the expected cost jumped to €140 million. The Department of Justice had budgeted a maximum of €80 million for the project and in mid-2019 the then minister for justice Charlie Flanagan ruled out meeting the increased costs, although he said he would like to see the project go ahead at “the earliest opportunity”.
The same year the OPW avoided paying the Vacant Site Levy by renting the land to developers of an adjoining site as a building compound. The site was vacated by the developer last November, the OPW said, and it is preparing to transfer the lands to the Courts Service before the end of this year. In mid-2020 the decision was taken not to proceed with the Supreme Court element, bringing the costs back down to €80 million. However, construction inflation since then means the project is likely to cost more than €100 million.
In June of last year, a preliminary business case for the family court complex was approved by the Government, with the project to be delivered as part of a public-private partnership bundle along with two rural Garda stations. In May of this year, the acting minister for justice Simon Harris announced the Garda Stations in Cork and Tipperary would be “decoupled” from the courts project, which would “substantially reduce” their timeline for development.
Detailed plans and layouts for the Hammond Lane site have been prepared by the OPW for a five-storey over basement building, with 19 courtrooms, consultation spaces, staff and judicial accommodation, public waiting areas, space for mediation and domestic violence support services, accommodation for legal practitioners, and custody facilities.
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