SOME OF the leading players in the Irish property market have come together to set up a new umbrella body to represent the interests of the industry and to formulate policy initiatives for the Government that could help to resuscitate the ailing sector.
The Irish Times has learned the group, Property Industry Ireland (PII), held its first meeting on June 15th.
It has opened its membership to architects, chartered surveyors, consulting engineers, contractors, developers, financial advisers, institutional investors, planning consultants, property lawyers and quantity surveyors.
Ronan King, a former partner with accountancy firm BDO and past president of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce, has been appointed chief executive, while Kieran McGowan, a former chief executive of the IDA and current chairman of CRH, has taken on the role of chairman.
PII has eight other board members: Roy Barrett, managing director of Goodbody Stockbrokers; Gerard Campbell, managing director of Bruce Shaw; Mark Fitzgerald, of estate agent Sherry Fitzgerald; John Hegarty, who heads building contractor PJ Hegarty Sons; Cork-based developer Michael O’Flynn; Jerry Mehigan, managing director of engineering group Arup; planner Tom Phillips; and architect Tony Reddy.
The cost of membership ranges from €500 up to €5,000, depending on the size of the entity involved.
An eight-page document outlining the objectives of the group has been circulated to potential members and it is understood PII will be formally launched in Dublin this week.
Among the objectives outlined in the document is support for the Government’s recent jobs initiative and for green economy projects, including energy efficiency retrofitting.
The group has also set out its intention to seek alternative funding mechanisms for projects and to try to source working capital, first-time buyer mortgages and investor finance packages.
The document also states PII would seek to provide “constructive input” to ensure Nama’s “long-term positive impact on economic recovery”, and input to the review on upward-only rental leases.
PII said it would seek to enhance “trust with the public” and to make available relevant market research data.
It states the Irish property sector is now worth just 4.5 per cent of our GDP, compared with about 10 per cent in the UK and 12.5 per cent in France, Belgium and Germany.
“There is a responsibility on industry leaders to take action to ensure that the property industry can support and be supported by a fair and competitive economy,” it adds.
