Legal action over ‘property damage’ may delay children’s hospital

Construction of the €1 billion Children’s Hospital in Dublin could be delayed following last week’s approach to the High Court by residents alleging their homes have been damaged by the works.

The legal move, by people whose homes back on to the site on the St James’s Hospital campus, came after work on the project was alleged to have caused structural damage to their homes.

A person with knowledge of the case but who did not wish to be identified said he expected the residents’ move would serve to delay construction. The complaints from the residents are understood to have already led to some work being stopped.

The matter was mentioned before Mr Justice Paul Gilligan last week when he granted lawyers for the residents permission to serve short notice of the proceedings on the defendants. The matter comes back before the courts this week.

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The proceedings, taken by residents of the O’Reilly Avenue, Ceannt Fort and Mount Brown areas, are against the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and BAM Civil Limited, the firm that is building the hospital.

The residents claim their homes have been damaged as a result of certain works being carried out by the defendants.

Building work on the hospital began within weeks of the Government giving the go-ahead earlier this year. It is the largest single construction development in the history of the State and is due for completion towards the end of 2021.