An alliance of local and national organisations has called on the Government to prevent the sale – at the behest of the National Asset Management Agency – of a strategically located landholding in the Liffey Valley near Lucan, Co Dublin.
The Liffey Valley Park Alliance believes the 274 acres of land adjoining St Edmundsbury should form part of a green swathe stretching from Islandbridge to Straffan, Co Kildare, as a "social dividend" from Nama's activities.
The landholding – assembled by Seán Mulryan, of Ballymore Properties – is to be sold by auction at the Clarion hotel in Lucan tomorrow.
“The lands have been subject to a specially devised zoning designation given their heritage importance, and countless efforts to rezone and build on them have been resisted over the years,” said alliance chair Attracta Uí Bhroin.
“Now, for the first time, they are within the State’s grasp to secure and leverage as an important and unique amenity in terms of our built and natural heritage – and the State is proposing to hock them to the highest bidder.”
The alliance has written to Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan, Minister for Arts and Heritage Jimmy Deenihan and Minister for Children's Affairs Frances Fitzgerald calling on them to "secure these lands for the nation".
"Recently, environmental interests were added to the list of causes that the National Lottery can support and now we hope that they will direct Lottery funding to create a fantastic amenity that is within 20 minutes of the capital's quays," Ms Uí Bhroin said.
The alliance said the land would provide a “strategic connection and access to the valley of the river Liffey and its existing public parklands, and facilitate a vision which all four county councils bordering the valley, and successive governments, have talked about for years”.
The land has limited development potential as it is protected by the Liffey Valley special amenity area order.
The alliance said it had “successfully defended this from development for over 20 years” and saw the impending sale as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to preserve this historic undeveloped open space in the heart of Dublin for the benefit of the country”.
“If changes are necessary to the Nama legislation to secure these lands for the nation as a social dividend then, simply, the auction should be called off to allow Government the time to do that. If there genuinely is a political will, there will be a political way,” it said.
A Nama spokesman said the agency “cannot discuss the position around individual assets/properties or debtors”. In any case, he said, Nama “does not have the power to simply give over assets to what it might feel are deserving causes”.
He said where Nama got involved in “worthy social initiatives” it would typically require an agency such as a local authority to “purchase the asset at a market rate, with the proceeds being set against the debt owed to the agency”.
