Over €2.25m spent maintaining vacant State-owned properties in past six years

In Crosshaven, Co Cork, seven former Coast Guard cottages are being transferred to the county council to form part of a social housing scheme. Picture: Denis Minihane

Over €2.25m has been spent by the Office of Public Works (OPW) on maintaining vacant State-owned properties and sites over the last six years, data shows.

There are a total of 68 vacant properties and sites within the control of the OPW at present. Some have been unoccupied for up to 55 years.

The former debtors’ prison on Halston St in Dublin city centre has cost the taxpayer €1.432m over the last six years.

The future use of the property has yet to be decided, with the OPW saying potential options are under consideration.

The highest maintenance expenditure over the six-year period came in 2024, when €482,390 was spent by the OPW.

Of the vacant properties, 20 are former Garda stations. Some are sale agreed, while others are in limbo due to title disputes.

In Crosshaven, Co Cork, seven former Coast Guard cottages are being transferred to the county council to form part of a social housing scheme.

The oldest site owned by the OPW is located in Ballintra, Co Donegal, with the agency saying it is being prepared for disposal in 2027.

Sinn Féin TD Pa Daly, who obtained the figures from the OPW through a parliamentary question, criticised the level of expenditure.

“At a time when workers and families are repeatedly told there is no money for housing, local services, or community facilities in their local areas, it is simply indefensible that over €2.25m has been spent maintaining buildings that have been left vacant for years and, in some cases, for more than half a century,” Mr Daly said.

“That is not good asset management; it is waste. The Government needs to stop managing decline and start putting these public assets back into public use.”

Mr Daly questioned what the spend on the properties and sites had achieved.

“The answer appears to be dozens of properties that remain vacant, deteriorating, or stuck in endless administrative limbo,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sinn Féin spokesperson on public expenditure Mairéad Farrell highlighted the long period of time some properties had lain vacant, citing the 55-year vacancy of the site in Donegal.

“Repeatedly, the explanation given is that properties are being considered for ‘future State use’, are under review, or have unresolved title issues. In many cases those explanations have persisted for years while costs continue to accumulate,” Ms Farrell said.

“In the middle of a housing crisis, with communities crying out for public facilities, social housing, community hubs and public services, the Government is allowing valuable public assets to sit idle while spending millions merely to maintain them.”