Calls made for council to buy €2.5m Orlagh House estate

By Laura Lyne

CALLS for South Dublin County Council to consider purchasing the Orlagh House Estate located on Gunny Hill, which has a price tag of €2.5 million, have been made by a number of councillors in the council, reports Laura Lyne.

The proposal was first presented by Rathfarnham Independent councillor Deirdre O’Donovan at this month’s Rathfarnham/Templeogue-Terenure area committee meeting, in a motion that called on the council to “seriously consider” the availability of Orlagh house and its premises as an amenity for the council area.

It also proposed a new interpretive centre for tourism and the mountains.

The motion was carried over to the monthly meeting of the full council and was passed, with Templeogue-Terenure Fianna Fail councillor Paul Foley calling for a meeting to discuss the option of purchasing the property.

In its response, the council said: “It is a protected structure the uses for which are limited and acknowledged by the vendor.

“It is not appropriate for the council to engage in public debate about the value or otherwise of a property for sale, beyond the information contained in the vendors sales marketing material.

“In the context of this council’s tourism aspirations for the Dublin Mountains we will arrange for the potential of the property to be further assessed.”