Shannon port company 'shocked' at consideration of its lands for affordable houses

The Shannon Foynes Port Company said inclusion of its lands had caused “serious concern and uncertainty” among customers and a potentially damaging effect for 800 jobs supported by its operations. File picture

The Shannon Foynes Port Company said it had “grave concerns” and was “quite frankly shocked” that property belonging to it had been included in a report on State lands earmarked for affordable housing.

It said inclusion of its lands had caused “serious concern and uncertainty” among customers and a potentially damaging effect for 800 jobs supported by its operations. In correspondence with the Land Development Agency (LDA), the port company said it was “disappointed” such a report could be published “without any meaningful consultation”.

The LDA report, published earlier this year, had identified 83 sites with the potential to deliver 67,000 new affordable homes over the medium to long term. However, its publication was not met with universal welcome with multiple public bodies querying how their land had ended up being included.

The HSE questioned why 10 of its sites at locations including Dublin, Limerick, Galway, and Waterford were listed as having development potential. In a letter to the LDA, it said it had not been afforded an opportunity for engagement and discussion on multiple properties prior to the report’s publication.

The correspondence said: “As a result, the report’s proposals for these sites do not appropriately reflect their utilisation by the HSE and its funded agencies or our future plans to develop these sites.” 

The HSE said in future there should be a “stronger process of engagement” and also urged the LDA to look at the potential for developing residential accommodation for key workers, especially in healthcare.

An Post also wrote to the Land Development Agency about the inclusion of its lands at Swords Business Park in Dublin. It said the land was an operating delivery service unit and was considered an “integral part of the operational model” for the region.

ESB said it had been engaging with the LDA about multiple sites but was not aware of any interest in other lands. It said certain property listed in the report was an “integral and critical part” of its operations and its goals of becoming net-zero by 2040.

Shannon Foynes Port Company

However, the most vigorous objection came from the Shannon Foynes Port Company.

A letter from it, released under FOI, said: “I am instructed by our Board to write to you to outline our grave concerns regarding the LDA report and to convey our disapproval regarding the report’s objective concerning our entire property at Limerick Docks.

“Furthermore, we are also disappointed, and, quite frankly, shocked that such a report would be published without any meaningful consultation with us, the property owner.” In response, LDA CEO John Coleman said not all sites in the report would be developed for housing and that preparing the report had been a statutory obligation for his agency.

Mr Coleman said the report had said the port lands were categorised as a “Class 3 site” meaning there were significant issues around infrastructure, flooding, existing operational uses and leases.

Asked about the records, a spokesman for the LDA said it welcomed and had received feedback on the report, including updated or clarified information on a small number of sites.