COUNCIL AND SISPAR TO REMOVESOME HOARDINGSWicklow County Council and Sispar, the public and private partners behind the GreystonesHarbour project, have restated their commitment to completing the development. Adecision from NAMA on whether to release the funding for the second phase whichincludes a Primary Care Centre, public square and club houses is expected shortly.

Sispar and Wicklow County Council have agreed a number of steps to respond to thelegitimate concerns about the continued restrictions on public access to the harbour.Sispar will remove a section of the hoardings - along Cliff Road - and erect a railing,thus opening up a view of the sea at this location. Sispar has begun the process ofsourcing the materials for this and hope to have this work completed within six weeksor less.

Sispar, Wicklow County Council and local representatives have also agreed to holddiscussions shortly on proposals to landscape and open up a section of the harbourarea to the public. A number of Greystones Councillors and interested groups havemade constructive proposals on how to do this and these are now being studied. Somedifficulties remain but if they can be resolved, the Council and Sispar will consult withlocal representatives and produce a proposal to landscape and open up part of theharbour area.

The intention is to allow the site for the second phase of the work to remain securewhile at the same time trying to give the people of Greystones access to the harbourin a manner that is safe.

Sispar has invested close to €75 million in this project so far and is totally committedto seeing it through. The major harbour works are complete. The remainder of thescheme can progress once critical decisions on planning and funding are taken.

PLANNINGFollowing a third party reference, An Bord Pleanála decided recently that Wicklow CountyCouncil needed to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment of the proposedamendments including an increase in the number of housing units from 341 to 375.This may add over six months to the process but we hope to have a decision on thisby the end of this year.

NewsJune 2011 - Issue 5

NewsJune 2011 - Issue 5

Wicklow County Counciland Sispar are determinedto complete GreystonesHarbour

■ Wicklow County Council

and Sispar are determined

to complete Greystones

Harbour

■ Planning

■ Funding

■ Next steps

Contents

Contact Us:

Lo-call information line - 1890 252 705

SISPAR has established a lo-call telephone information lineto facilitate enquiry and access to information.

Please call 1890 252 705 if you have any questions and wewill respond promptly.

The information line will operate for the duration of thedevelopment.

Published by Sispar Ltd, The Herbert Building, The Park, Carrickmines, Dublin 18

FUNDINGThe development is a Public Private Partnership which aims to fund the provision of top quality public services through salesof residential units. The dramatic change in the housing market in recent years has substantially altered the economics ofthe project. However, the public partner (Wicklow Co Co) and private partner (Sispar) are continuing to work to ensure thatthe project is delivered in its entirety over the coming years.

In April 2010 the regular payments from the loan for the project were suspended by AIB and the loan was subsequentlytransferred to NAMA. The partners are now awaiting the outcome of a review by NAMA. The timing of this is out of thecontrol of Wicklow County Council and Sispar but they are hopeful of a decision sooner rather than later.

The suspension of agreed funding happened at a critical stage when a halt to work would have left the project vulnerableto damage from rough sea conditions if works stopped for any period of time. Sispar therefore decided to fund furtherworks to the value of €14 million from their own resources in order to protect the project from damage caused by delay.

NEXT STEPS:■ Phase one of the development, which comprises the major harbour works is now substantially complete and allows for

public launching facilities from the slipway.

■ Sispar’s business plan for Phase 2 consists of a Primary Care Centre, 11 apartments, club buildings and the public square.This matter is currently with NAMA. Sispar has no clear indication of the timescale of NAMA’s decision but expects to be engaging with the agency sooner rather than later. Once construction of this phase begins it should be completed within 12 months.

■ The remainder of the project which is made up mainly of residential units and public infrastructure works is dependent on funding which in turn is dependent on a successful outcome to the proposed amendments to the scheme. The commencement of this final phase will be dependent on market conditions.

According to a spokesman for Sispar: “When phase 2 is complete we will be in a position to remove most of the hoardingsand open what will be a wonderful facility to the people of the Greystones area. From the primary care centre local GPpractices and the HSE will provide routine GP services and public health nursing, dentistry, physiotherapy, occupationaland speech and language therapy, diagnostic imaging facilities and a clinical pharmacy. This and the retail units will be ofgreat benefit from an employment perspective.”

“We know that the delays to this project are a source of great frustration to the people of Greystones and that the continuedpresence of hoardings detracts from the quality of life the people of the area expect to enjoy. We are now working toaddress some of these concerns. Nobody is more frustrated that we are. We are ready, willing and impatient to continuedevelopment of this project in which we have already invested €75 million. Our interests and those of the people ofGreystones are the same and we ask them to bear with us as we await these decisions on planning and funding and workto make some immediate improvements to the situation.”