The Government is spending more than €1.3 million per year renting car parking spaces for civil servants, the Garda and officials in other public bodies.
Landlords who receive rents for the parking spaces include prominent business figures such as financial adviser Derek Quinlan and property developers Paddy McKillen and John Byrne, who own car park companies.
The business is considered attractive because of the tax relief that is available for developers of car park schemes.
While it is well-known that business figures such as Lochlann Quinn and Larry Goodman rent office space to the State, the expenditure on car parking and the identity of car park owners has never been published.
The annual rents on car park spaces amount to €1.12 million in Dublin, where some 7,000 civil servants are believed to avail of free parking.
Records released to The Irish Times by the Office of Public Works show that the State also rents spaces in Drogheda, Cork, Galway, Navan, Waterford, Wexford and New Ross.
The biggest single contract is for annual payments of €235,823 to Future Parking Services Ltd, which owns a car park at Marlborough Street in central Dublin. It also receives annual rents of €86,499 for parking spaces at St Stephen's Green, €65,537 for spaces at Carroll's Quay in Cork, and €4,961 for spaces at the Waterford Marina Hotel.
The company's directors are Colm Whelan and Raymond Peers. They are also directors of Fenpark Ltd, a company that receives €22,000 in rents for spaces at Ushers Quay. Mr Quinlan's company, Park Rite, receives €135,660 under two contracts for spaces at Drury Street in central Dublin.
The company also receives €53,200 for spaces at Christchurch car park.
Mr McKillen is a director with businessman Padraig Drayne of Dublin City Parking Ltd, which receives €8,000 for spaces at Jervis Shopping Centre car park.
Mr Byrne, who was a significant client of Ansbacher (Cayman) Ltd, owns Dublin City Estates, which receives €19,426 in rents for spaces in Luke Street car park.
The Parnell Partnership, which owns the Parnell Centre on Parnell Street receives €77,355 in rent for car park spaces at the centre.
College & Holding Property, for which no details are publicly available, receives €77,584 for spaces at College House car park on Townsend Street.
RIC Property Management also receives €53,963 for spaces in the same car park.
Its directors are Vincent Ceillier and Cynthioa Ceillier of Cabinteely.
The owners of the Ripley Court Hotel receive €60,500 for spaces in Talbot Street. Delview Ltd, which is linked to the former Arthur Anderson accountancy practice, receives €32,750 for spaces at Fenian Street.
ISS Ireland receives €12,740 for the Dublin Port Garda car park. Its directors are Michael Madsen, David Healy and Jahangeer Ahmed.
The Leinster Cricket Club receives €30,000 for spaces at the Central Statistics Office site in Rathmines while the Carmelite Sisters receive €60,750 for spaces at Whitefriar Street.
