The Department of Education has sought planning permission for a Community Centre and a three storey, 24 classroom, national school for Tyrrelstown Educate Together. The local Mulhuddart National School was expected to be included in the application but a separate application has been submitted to provide for seven new prefabs at its temporary site on the Powerstown road.

Councillor Kieran Dennison (FG) said “the news was dissapointing but not surprising. Officials had already indicated that only one school would be built when I questioned them at a council meeting last July. However, the staff and students attending the Mulhuddart National School will be very disappointed by the news. The expectation was that the two schools would be built together on the one site and that they would share the community facility.

“Residents will want to know why the Department is not proceeding with both schools and on what basis has one school been chosen over the other. This could potentially become a divisive issue in the community and that’s the last thing Tyrrelstown needs right now. With seven new prefabs there are obviously no plans to proceed with building the Mulhuddart School for many years to come.

“In March 2007, just before the last general election, Minister Brian Lenihan promised that the schools would be built and operating by that September. Since then, one promise after another has been broken by Fianna Fail and the Greens.

“After years of wrangling the sites were finally acquired by the council in February. They were transferred to the Department of Education in record time so that building work could get underway to have both schools opened this September. It is difficult to understand why the planning application has taken so long and why it is for only one of the schools.
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Fine Gael TD for Dublin West, Leo Varadkar, has called on Fingal County Council review its pilot ‘Growing Places’ policy under which a large number of open spaces and green areas are being allowed to grow wild. The policy is supposed to encourage greater biodiversity by allowing weed and wild flower to grow which in turn attract birds and insects like butterflies and ladybirds.

‘I have received a large number of complaints from residents in recent days about the council’s decision not cut the grass on open space and woodland areas in Dublin 15. In some places like Delwood, residents are particularly aggrieved as they can no long use their local park to play to football or other ball games. In other areas, residents are concerned about vermin and find the uncut areas to be unsightly.’

‘I can see the case for trying this out around woodlands or on a relatively small part of a large open space but I do not think that whole parks should be allow to go wild in this way. I am calling on the council to review its policy and scale back the areas affected’

List of areas affected in Dublin 15:

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Fine Gael TD for Dublin West, Leo Varadkar, has given a guarded welcome to plans from Dublin Bus to re-organise the bus routes around Dublin 15. The changes are planned for implementation in July and form part of Dublin Bus’ cost-cutting and rationalisation plan.

Among the changes are:

• The 37 bus will now terminate at Wilton Terrace providing a direct bus service from Clonsilla, Carpenterstown and Castleknock through town to St Stephens Green and the Luas;
• The 70 bus will serve Dunboyne and Clonee and will travel straight down the N3 without going into Blanchardstown Centre and the Village;
• The various 39 bus routes will be merged in to two routes one will be more direct and other more frequent but more circuitous;
• The badly served area around Latchford and Manorfields will now be on the 39 bus route; and
• The 39 and 70 will cross town terminating at Wilton Terrace

All 38 buses will serve Castlecurragh (they won’t go through Mulhuddart Village anymore) and will run as far as UCD

There will be greater use of existing bus lanes and less routes and roads that have no bus lanes
Bus services will run seven days a week

‘The new bus route map and timetable will be welcomed by many commuters in Dublin 15 especially those who work in the southern part of the city around St Stephen’s Green, Merrion Square and the Grand Canal. . Residents of Clonee will welcome a more direct bus service to town but won’t be happy that they are being cut off from the Blanchardstown Centre. Some people are definitely going to have to work farther to catch the bus that they want.’

‘It seems that Dublin 15 is avoiding most of the cuts to services in other parts of the city but it is hard to see how a better service can be provided with ninety fewer buses in operation across the city. I believe the time has come to allow private operators to take over some of the routes currently controlled by Dublin Bus. This would allow Dublin Bus to provide a better and more frequent service on the routes they retain. It’s a shame to see so many buses, public and private, not been used. I would still like to see the 37 terminate at the Blanchardstown Centre in order provide a direct bus service to the Centre for residents of Castleknock and Carpenterstown’

Fine Gael TD for Dublin West has called on Fingal County Council to spend the €2.7 million that it has in the bank to provide a public park for Tyrrelstown.  The money was paid by the developer of the estate to the council in 2000 in lieu of providing land for a public park for the seven thousand residents in the area.  The money has been warehoused in the council’s bank account for over ten years earning interest for the council but doing nothing for the residents of Tyrrelstown.  If the council does not spend the money by 2015, it will revert to the developer.

‘This money has been resting in the council’s bank account for over decade.  It has been earning interest for the Manager but has done nothing for the residents of Tyrrelstown.  The money was included in the purchase price of their homes.  The council is running out of time to spend this money.  It would be a tragedy if it was forfeited to the developer due to inertia among the council’s top brass.  Now that land prices have fallen dramatically and land-owners need cash, the council must use this money to acquire land for a public park and to equip it for use.’

On Monday, March 1st I will be hosting a public meeting in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown at 8pm.

One of the key priorities for Fine Gael in Dublin West, and for me since my election in 2007 has been the proper regulation of Residential Management Companies. I am one of the few TDs who lives in a Management Company development, so I have a personal interest in it too. Despite the explosion of the number of apartment complexes over the past decade, especially in Dublin 15, there is no proper legislation or regulations which govern these companies.

For more details on the Bill, I have set up a set on this site giving more details and seeking your feedback.

Fine Gael TD for Dublin West, Leo Varadkar secured a special ‘adjournment debate’ in Dail last night to discuss the lack of progress in securing a permanent school site for Mulhuddart National School and Tyrrelstown Educate Together.  A six acre site to the north of the existing village centre in Tyrrelstown has been identified and the landowner has offer to sell it to the authorities for a nominal €1. 

However, progress on securing the site has been painfully slow with the Department of Education, Fingal County Council and the developer all blaming each other for the delay.  Tyrrelstown Educate Together has already confirmed that it will only be able to accept one new class in September 2010 if progress is not made.  The debate was also addressed by Joan Burton TD of the Labour Party and Martin Mansergh TD, the Minister for the Office of Public Works, responded for the government.

Speaking in the Chamber, Leo Varadkar TD said:

‘Tyrrelstown is a case study is disintegrated planning.  The estate is almost ten years old.  There are 2,500 houses and it is home to 8,000 people, mostly young people with young families and large mortgages.  They shouldn’t have to worry about whether their child will have a place in school in next year …. The site for the school has been identified, the owner has already sought and received planning permission for two schools and a community centre but the site has not been acquired …. There is a triangle of denial and irresponsible among the council, government and developer who are all blaming each other for the delay.  The Minister for Finance promised that a school would be delivered in the run up to the last General Election and the recent Local Election.  His promise has not been kept.  This situation is a disgrace, it is an indictment of the government and an embarrassment to us all.’

The Minister was unable offer any good news and refused to comment on the legal negotiations between the developer and council.  He went on to indicate that the Department of Education had asked the council for more land to extend the temporary school complex.

The full debate including the Minister’s reply is below.
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Fine Gael TD for Dublin West, Leo Varadkar has predicted that there will be a school places crisis in Tyrrelstown in September 2010 if the designated site for the long-promised permanent school buildings is not acquired immediately. This comes in the wake of a decision by the board of Tyrrelstown Educate Together National School to accept only one junior infant class in September 2010. The school currently takes three classes per year.

‘Tyrrelstown and the greater Mulhuddart parish area are home to over four thousand people. The area has developed rapidly over the past ten years and has two primary schools which must operate from temporary buildings on a temporary site. These schools are Tyrrelstown Educate and Mulhuddart National School. Noting that the Board of Tyrrelstown Educate Together now only intends to accept one class of junior infants in 2010 that there will be a school places crisis in the area next year. The Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan made a commitment to the community in the run up to both the General and Local Elections but these have not been honoured. There have been lots of promises but very little real progress.’

‘When I made enquires with Fingal County Council which is handling the acquisition of the site on behalf of the Department of Education, I was told that the matter is currently being held up due to legal problems with the contract provided to the council by the landowner. However, this has been going on for months now. There does not seem to be any sense of urgency. I hope that the decision of the school board will inject a much greater sense of urgency’

Today (Monday), I asked the Ceann Comhairle for permission for an adjournment debate in the Dail on this issue. The text of my motion is as follows:

That the Minister for Education, noting the fact that Tyrrelstown and Mulhuddart parish area is home to over four thousand people, has developed rapidly in the past ten years has two primary schools which must operate from temporary buildings on a temporary site. These schools are Tyrrelstown Educate and Mulhuddart National School. Noting that the Board of Tyrrelstown Educate Together now only intends to accept one class of junior infants in 2010 that there will be a school places crisis in the area next year. Noting the many commitments made by the Minister for Finance to the community in the run up to the General and Local Elections, Dail Eireann calls on the Minister for Education and Science to report to the Dail on the progress that has been made in acquiring the identified permanent site for the two school and to assure the house that the new schools will commence construction in 2010.

Department Admits Twelve Local Schools in ‘‘critical need of repair or urgent attention’

Eight Schools Spending more than €50,000 a year on Prefabs

Local Dublin West TD, Leo Varadkar has revealed Department of Education information which contains the list of all schools in Dublin 15 which require building works.

“The scale of the building problems facing Dublin 15 is chronic. Currently there are 12 separate schools being described by the Department as being in ‘critical need of repair or urgent attention’. In addition, there are three new schools projects in the pipeline, yet only one of these – the Hansfield NS school project is at the advanced Architectural Planning Stage. The other two projects, Tyrellstown Educate Together and Hansfield Community College are still stranded at the pre-architectural planning stage.”

Leo Varadkar continued “while these twelve schools are in urgent need of investment, the Department of Education is pouring hundreds of thousands of Euros each year down the drain by the renting of prefabs. Currently in Dublin 15, there are eight schools which making extensive use of prefabs – in each case at an annual cost of more than €50,000. In three cases, St. Mochta’s NS, St Brigid’s GNS, and Scoil Bhride BNS. This is dead money and could be put to much better use by providing permanent buildings for our children.”

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Kieran Dennison

The long awaited pay and display parking scheme for Clonsilla Railway Station has been shelved by the Council because of a lack of funds. The scheme was designed to regularise commuter parking in the vicinity of the railway station and relieve congestion in the nearby Portersgate Estate.

Former Chairman of Portersgate Residents Association and now Fine Gael local election candidate Kieran Dennison is fuming over the decision and blames inaction by local councillors. “This is a very big let down for the local residents, commuters and all who have campaigned to regularise the parking in the area. The council have already spent a fortune of public money on consultants in drawing up this scheme and we were assured that the funding was ring fenced.” In a newsletter last October I reported that the scheme was to go to tender by the end of the year but warned that ‘cutbacks in expenditure could significantly delay the project’. It’s unbelievable that it should be shelved only two months after councillors adopted their €270m budget for 2009. This project would only represent 0.2% of that. Last April Community Voice revealed that the council spends over €85,000 each year on providing senior staff with a daily newspaper. Like every other citizen I would like some idea what the other millions are spent on.” …[more]

Kieran Dennison, one of the two Fine Gael candidates running in the Mulhuddart Ward later this year has launched his own website at kierandennison.com.