Peter McVerry Trust sued by Killarney firm over failure to complete site purchase

The Peter McVerry Trust entered an agreement with the current owners Nocwerdna Ltd, High Street, Killarney, to purchase the greenfield site.

The Peter McVerry Trust is being sued by a Killarney company to complete the purchase of a town centre site for sheltered accommodation to house young people.

Planning was granted in 2021 to a private individual to build an eight-room, sheltered accommodation centre on a derelict site/greenfield site on Fleming’s Lane off High Street in Killarney town centre. The facility was to house young people coming out of care.

The Peter McVerry Trust, a national housing and homeless charity, entered an agreement with the current owners Nocwerdna Ltd, High Street, Killarney, to purchase the greenfield site with a view to constructing the sheltered facility.

The agreement was not finalised as the money had not been paid over by the trust, the Circuit Civil Court in Tralee has been told. An application for summary judgement on Tuesday was adjourned to allow the Peter McVerry Trust enter a replying affidavit.

Elizabeth Murphy, barrister for the Killarney company, told the court her application was for 'summary judgment'. The agreement entered into last January had a closing date of May 4 last, the barrister said.

"I am still without my money," Ms Murphy told Judge Sinéad Behan.

The site had planning for a sheltered accommodation for teenagers facility and had been advertised for sale by Nocwerdna Ltd. The Peter McVerry Trust had entered an agreement to purchase it, solicitor for Nocwerdna Ltd, Dan O’Connor said.

A contract for sale had been entered and signed and was binding but the company did not transfer the balance of purchase monies before the agreed closing date and had not progressed matters at all during June, July, and August.

There had been a number of letters seeking to confirm funds, in May and in June, as well as telephone contacts throughout the summer. Legal proceedings were lodged by the company in September as the closing date had passed, according to the civil bill.

Statutory investigation

The matter had become "even more urgent" in circumstances where RTÉ 1 carried a story on September 26 that inspectors had been appointed to carry out a statutory investigation into the Peter McVerry Trust,. Subsequent newspaper reports detailed how The Approved Housing Bodies’ Regulatory Authority was notified of a number of financial and governance issues at the Peter McVerry company in July 2023, the affidavit by Nocwerdna company secretary Cornelius Duggan of Aghadoe, Killarney, stated.

Judge Sinéad Behan adjourned the matter to October 24 by which time a replying affidavit is to be filed.

Plans for the sheltered accommodation attracted a number of objections and was appealed to An Bord Pleanála.

In June 2021 An Bord Pleanála gave conditional go-ahead for the three-storey facility. Among the conditions by the board were that ‘no part’ of the town centre building could be used for overnight paying guest accommodation.