Dublin's Lord Mayor knew about the Camden Yard site purchase 'from the outset'
The Lord Mayor has defended his early knowledge of Dublin City Council’s plan to purchase the Camden Yard site as simply keeping abreast on matters of public interest.
This comes as Sinn Fein has tabled an emergency motion at Monday’s monthly council meeting regarding what Councillor Daithi Doolan described as a purchase that brought up serious questions about “governance, transparency and accountability.” While Cllr Doolan stated it was not right that councillors were “left in the dark” about the €100 million acquisition, information obtained by Dublin Live revealed Lord Mayor Cllr Ray Mc Adam was aware of the purchase plans “from the outset.”
“In relation to councillor engagement, representatives of all political parties on the council were informed by phone by the Chief Executive and senior staff between 14 - 16 December. The Lord Mayor was kept informed from the outset while the opportunity was being explored, given the sensitive, commercially confidential nature of the proposals,” a statement from the council said.
While Cllr Doolan’s motion is calling on the Chief Executive to keep representatives fully updated about “any future decisions of this nature,” Lord Mayor McAdam justified the way the matter was handled as the "commercial sensitivities” of a large-scale property acquisitions meant it was not possible to make the information available until there was a more concrete agreement in place.
“The Chief Executive indicated to me that he and the senior management team were examining the potential for the Camden Yard site and that it was up for sale at a significantly reduced cost. He indicated that part of the rationale for it was to look at the potential for new civic offices as opposed to retrofitting the existing civic offices in Wood Quay,” Lord Mayor McAdam explained.
Lord Mayor McAdam saw the opportunity for both the Camden Yard and Wood Quay sites to be utilised for new public and affordable housing and said that, as Lord Mayor, being privy to such information is “part and parcel” of the kind of engagement he has with the Chief Executive.
While the Chief Executive needs approval from councillors for the sale or disposal of council land, he does not actually require approval for the purchase of the Camden Yard site. However, Lord Mayor McAdam stated that the Chief Executive did engage with relevant SPC leaders.
“I do know that he and the senior management team would have engaged directly with the relevant chairs of the SPCs including housing and finance, which includes Councillor Seamus McGrath of Sinn Fein,” he said.
“I understand that a number of key Sinn Fein personnel were aware of the matter and that there will be an opportunity for all group leaders in person to meet with the Chief Executive and the senior management team on Monday afternoon next.”
Lord Mayor McAdam said that “in order to get the best possible deal for the taxpayer and the city” it was not appropriate to share the information with all local representatives. While Cllr Doolan has criticised “selective briefings of certain parties” and “the drip, drip release of information,” the Lord Mayor said they were waiting for “an appropriate stage in the process” after ensuring an offer was being made.
“There are things on a day-to-day basis that the Lord Mayor of the day would be kept abreast of by the Chief Executive,” Lord Mayor McAdam said. “As the most visible member of the council, they're likely to be asked questions about any story that may appear in the papers, the press or online.
“Therefore, that is why the Chief Executive, whoever he or she is, would be there to make sure that the Lord Mayor is at least kept abreast of what is going on, of any pertinent issues or matters that may arise throughout the term of office.”
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