New valuation for stalled Thornton Hall prison site

A computer-generated image of the proposed prison on the Thornton Hall site in north Dublin. Picture: Justice.ie

The State is to get a new valuation on a 150-acre site that was originally earmarked for a €525m prison in an effort to determine its future use.

Thornton Hall in north Dublin was purchased in the mid-2000s to be the location for a large-scale prison to replace Mountjoy. However, despite more than €50m being spent on purchasing and servicing the site, a brick has never been laid, and recent valuations suggested the site was worth a fraction of its purchase price.