The managing director of Ardmore Studios has criticised the fact that he was not contacted by any member of Wicklow County Council when the owner of land near Ashford told councillors the studios were to be relocated to the site if it was rezoned.
Mr Kevin Moriarty said he had discussions yesterday afternoon with Mr Joe O'Connell, the owner of the land at Ballyhenry, near Ashford.
This followed yesterday's report in The Irish Times which revealed that architects for Mr O'Connell claimed incorrectly in a submission to councillors that Ardmore Studios wanted to relocate and could be lost to Co Wicklow. Ardmore made clear on Monday that it has no intention of relocating from its current site in Bray.
Mr Moriarty said he had been assured by Mr O'Connell that the inaccurate claims about Ardmore had been made entirely by accident.
"I'm willing to accept the assurances that it wasn't intentional. However I'm still amazed and surprised that nobody from the county council contacted me to check the statements they received were correct," he said.
He accepted that there was "no underlying motive for using Ardmore's name" in the submission. Whether the rezoning was made by Wicklow councillors based on the incorrect claim was a matter for the council itself, he said.
He said that while there could be "no excuse" for making erroneous claims, he understood how they might have emerged because of ongoing, but unfounded, rumours that Ardmore wanted to move from Bray.
He said he would be contacting Wicklow County Council to clarify Ardmore's position that it did not intend to move.
Mr Moriarty said he had been told by Mr O'Connell that proposed film studios at the rezoned Ashford site would not be in direct competition with Ardmore. It is understood that the Ashford proposals centre around the provision of larger lots and stage space for bigger budget films that cannot be accommodated by Ardmore at present.
"From my discussions with him, I'm quite happy it's a complementary activity," he said. He hoped to hold further discussions with Mr O'Connell.
Meanwhile, Ashford GAA club has said it does not want to move to the Ballyhenry land, despite the fact that the rezoning provides for a new pitch.
In his submission to councillors, the owner said there was "an opportunity" for Ashford GAA to relocate to a Centre of Sporting Excellence on the site.
Mr Niall Nolan, secretary of Ashford GAA, said yesterday the club "did not want to move".
However, Wicklow County GAA board, which owns the grounds, confirmed there had been discussions about moving from the site but there was "nothing concrete" in terms of proposals.