Dublin City Council Bid Fails as Private Buyer Purchases Sandymount Martello Tower
- Dublin City Council failed in its bid to purchase Sandymount’s historic Martello tower after offering below the guide price of €1.5 million, with a private individual ultimately securing...
- Council officials had described the protected structure as an important bit of heritage in the city after inspecting the site earlier in the year.
- Green Party councillor Hazel Chu called the missed acquisition a large missed opportunity for the public.
Dublin City Council failed in its bid to purchase Sandymount’s historic Martello tower after offering below the guide price of €1.5 million, with a private individual ultimately securing the Dublin 4 monument for a higher amount, The Irish Times reported.
Council Officials and Councillors Urged Public Acquisition
Council officials had described the protected structure as an important bit of heritage in the city after inspecting the site earlier in the year. Several councillors also pushed for the local authority to buy the vacant monument, which has stood empty for more than two decades.
Green Party councillor Hazel Chu called the missed acquisition a large missed opportunity for the public. She argued that the State should have stepped in to buy the property for public use rather than leaving it to the open market.
It’s a piece of our heritage and a piece of our history. We really should be keeping it for public use.
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Hazel Chu
Minister of State Emer Higgins stated when the property went on the market that the Office of Public Works had no plans to buy the tower. Chu disputed that stance, noting that the purchase price was affordable for the State.
There’s always a ‘we’ll leave it to someone else’. It’s not something the State couldn’t have afforded. It wasn’t a price tag of €20 million. €1.5 million is a lot of money still, but it wasn’t a large price tag for something that could be put back into use.
Hazel Chu
Valuer Raised Concerns Over Modernisation Costs
Internal correspondence obtained under the Freedom of Information Act revealed that a Dublin city valuer considered the €1.5 million guide price excessive. The valuer warned that a 1980s three-storey extension attached to the tower would require complete modernisation or demolition.
The valuer noted in June correspondence with DCC chief executive Richard Shakespeare that the council’s offer was very fair and reasonable despite coming in below the guide price. Estate agent Colliers subsequently informed the council that three bids had been placed and the municipal offer was unsuccessful.
Previous Development Plans and Napoleonic History
The Sandymount structure is one of 28 defensive Martello towers built between 1804 and 1805 from Bray to Balbriggan to guard against a potential French invasion during the Napoleonic wars. The tower operated as a popular cafe in the 1960s before the addition of the three-storey extension two decades later.
Property developer Robert Noonan previously planned a restaurant at the site in partnership with restaurateur Peter Langan. That project collapsed following Langan’s death in 1988 at age 47 after a fire at his UK home. Michael Doyle of the Doyle Hotels family later owned the tower and sought planning permission to convert it into a microbrewery, but the application was rejected in 1999.