OPW puts plans for Dublin skyscraper on hold

Plans to create Ireland’s tallest building, a 32-storey skyscraper by Heuston Station in Dublin, are the latest victim of the downturn in the property market. Three years after securing planning permission to build the apartment block as part of a residential, office and cultural centre, the Office of Public Works has put the ambitious development on hold. The OPW is still saying the project could proceed, but with just two years left on the planning permission, industry sources say this is very unlikely in its present form. At the height of the property boom, the land with planning permission was estimated to be worth €100 million, but is unlikely to fetch that sum in current market conditions. A spokesman said the State body had not been in contact with any potential developers in the private sector about a joint venture, nor had it opened discussions with the HSE, Revenue Commissioners and Garda Síochána, which occupy part of the 4.5-acre site and would have to leave before development could begin.

The Irish Times