No imminent sale of Lahinch barracks

A Department of Defence facility in North Clare, whose sale was recommended in the McCarthy Report, is unlikely to be put on the market in the near future, it was confirmed this week.

While the multi-million euro site in Lahinch has been earmarked for sale, it is not among the 10 properties “being actively pursued”, according to a representative of the department.
“No formal valuation of the property has been carried out but it has been identified as a property for disposal,” a department spokesperson confirmed, adding, “It is not known at this time when it may be disposed of”.
There had been some conjecture that representatives of the department recently visited the site with a view to its sale. However, the department denied this, saying its property management branch is “not aware of any delegation from the department visiting the property”.
The defence forces’ site in Lahinch is located opposite the entrance to the championship golf course and falls between the Castle course and the community GAA field.
Clare TD and Minister for Defence, Tony Killeen stated, “No decisions have been made in relation to any of the department’s properties. However, I have visited a number of barracks and the authorities have made positive mention of the importance of the Lahinch facility for certain specialised training requirements.
“No decisions are likely to be taken in relation to Lahinch in the current climate,” he added.
Indeed, while the site is in a prime location, local auctioneer Michael Leyden believes the price that could expect to be achieved for the property has halved in the past four years.
“2005 or 2006 would have been the ideal time to unload the site. It would still hold quite a high value but the banks are not lending and the few developers that are left are burnt. It would be an investor that would buy that and leave it to sit and hopefully appreciate.
“A couple of years ago, the site would have commanded a price of at least €1 million an acre. At the moment, you would nearly have to cut that by half,” he stated.
Ennistymon-based Fine Gael county councillor Martin Conway expressed disappointment at the possibility the barracks might be sold.
“I would be very confident that Tony Killeen, as Minister for Defence, will ensure that a military barracks will continue in North Clare. I have no doubt of the minister’s commitment to this. We are fortunate that he is in that department at the moment and I am confident he will ensure that the site will not be sold.
“However, I would like a clear, unambiguous statement from the Department of Defence reversing their stated intentions to sell and confirming that this proposal has been shelved indefinitely,” he concluded.