Peter McVerry Trust ordered to complete €300,000 purchase of Killarney site for youth sheltered facility

The Peter McVerry Trust has been ordered to complete the purchase of a €300,000 greenfield site in Killarney town centre and has been given one week to do so.

The site, at Fleming’s Lane, High Street, has planning permission for a sheltered facility for children and young people.

Killarney Circuit Civil Court has already heard how the Peter McVerry Trust Clg, a national housing and homeless charity, had entered into an agreement with Nocwerdna Ltd, High Street, Killarney, in January to purchase the site, with a view to constructing the sheltered facility. A written contract had been entered into in March, the closing date for the sale was May 4th and money was to be paid over.

A booking deposit of €10,000 had been paid over by the homeless charity, but the remainder of the money was outstanding, the Circuit Civil Court in Killarney heard on Friday.

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“We have a booking deposit paid and a defendant who simply refuses to complete the purchase,” Elizabeth Murphy, barrister for Nocwerdna, instructed by Dan O’Connor solicitor, told Judge Terence O’Sullivan.

Her application was for summary judgement for a decree to complete the contract, and the case had been adjourned on consent to allow a replying affidavit.

Counsel for the Peter McVerry Trust, Shane Kelly, asked for the motion to be struck out. There were a number of conflicting issues, including the exact date the contract was entered into in March and the registered owner of the site, and the matter should go to a full hearing, Mr Kelly said.

“The plaintiff in this case, Nocwerdna Ltd, pleads he is the registered owner. That company isn’t the registered owner. It is Con Duggan Ltd,” Mr Kelly submitted.

It was incumbent on Mr Duggan to put evidence before the court as to the ownership of the property, the defence barrister said.

Documents before the court including a letter in August from the CEO of the McVerry Trust showed there was “no doubt” that this was an executed contract, Ms Murphy said.

“There may be a conflict of evidence, but not a conflict of relevant evidence,” Ms Murphy said.

Judge Terence O’Sullivan granted the order to complete the contract. What was outstanding was just the question of money, all matters to complete the contract were in place, Ms Murphy told the court.

“The closure can take place in a week,” Ms Murphy told Judge O’Sullivan. Costs were also awarded to Nocwerdna.

Counsel for the Trust, Mr Kelly, asked for a stay on the order in order to appeal the matter. Judge O’Sullivan refused.

Planning was granted in 2021 to a private individual to build a three-storey sheltered accommodation centre for up to eight young people at Fleming’s Lane, Killarney, for those coming out of care who were homeless.

The proposal for the derelict greenfield site attracted objections. It was granted permission by Kerry County Council in 2020, was appealed to An Bord Pleanála, which granted permission in 2021.

The grounding affidavit by Nocwerdna company secretary, Cornelius Duggan, of Aghadoe, Killarney, in the application which came before the Circuit Civil Court in Killarney on Friday stated there had been a number of letters to the Peter McVerry Trust seeking to confirm funds, in May and in June, as well as telephone contacts throughout the summer. Legal proceedings were lodged in September as the closing date had passed over four months previously.

The matter had become “even more urgent” in circumstances where RTÉ carried a story on Tuesday September 26th last to the effect that inspectors had been appointed to carry out a statutory investigation into the Peter McVerry Trust, and 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, Mr Duggan said in his affidavit seeking completion of the purchase.