The bizarre reason why restoration of Rathfarnham Castle has taken 30yrs
In a statement read into the Dáil record, the Office of Public Works (OPW) said it anticipates that it will now complete the restoration of the facade of Dublin's Rathfarnham Castle in 2027.
The OPW had been under fire recently for its costly and delayed projects including at the Workplace Relations Commission in Ballsbridge, Dublin, which resulted in a 70 metre stretch of low wall outside the building costing €490,000 to complete.
The beleaguered agency, which also oversaw the building of the now infamous €336,000 Dáil bike shed, has been engaged in a restoration project at Rathfarnham Castle for three decades.
This month the OPW admitted that the promised completion of render to the front of Rathfarnham Castle which had been promised by this summer, will now take at least another two years. Rathfarnham Castle. Pic: Sean Dwyer
The issue was raised by the Fianna Fáil TD John Lahart who asked OPW Minister Kevin 'Boxer' Moran why, having been told in 2024 that the job of restoring the frontage of the castle would be finished in 2025, the
OPW was now saying the job wouldn't be completed until 2027.
The minister replied the exterior of the castle is showing signs of wear and tear and needs to be finished with a substance called lime harling, to be restored to its former glory.
However, Mr Moran said he had been advised by the OPW that the 'problem with lime harling is that there is a short seasonal window, along with weather conditions, in which the lime harling finish can be applied and these works are not expected to take place until 2027'.
Mr Lahart asked why 2027 was the new date, given that in 2024 he had been told 'a weather window would be required to carry out the works and the works would be carried out in 2025'. The beleaguered agency, which also oversaw the building of the now infamous €336,000 Dáil bike shed, has been engaged in a restoration project at Rathfarnham Castle for three decades.
He said: 'The warm weather window has well and truly been with us for the past four or five months. Now, the Minister of State is saying the works will be carried out in 2027. What has changed?'
In reply the minister said: 'To be honest, I can't say.' Mr Moran noted that funds have been allocated to undertake this project, with a senior architect assigned to oversee the design and completion.
The minister also assured the Fianna Fáil TD that he would not let the matter rest, saying 'I will pursue it because I fell in love with the castle when I went there. It is a fabulous facility.'
Rathfarnham Castle was built in 1583 and has been owned by Archbishop Adam Loftus, the founder of Trinity College, 18th century politician Speaker Conolly, and the Jesuit Order.
The castle is one of Elizabethan houses. It was declared a national monument and purchased by the State from the Jesuits in 1987.
Responding to this latest delay, Mr Lahart told Extra.ie this week: 'The OPW appear to exist in a different time zone to the ordinary citizen, where one year in citizen time is three years in OPW time. Fianna Fáil TD John Lahart. Pic: RTÉ One
'The castle is a critical social and cultural asset and yet the driest summer on record does not apparently provide them with the three decades-long job.
Apparently, even climate change cannot speed up the OPW.'
Elsewhere, the OPW is also embroiled in a row with locals in Co. Kildare over Castletown House. Last year, it proposed a new entrance and car park to the popular estate near the village of Celbridge but locals objected.
In response, some locals have been maintaining a protest at the entrance to the Castletown estate for 11 months.
The site has been open to the public for the past three decades but over the past year the row has bitterly divided the Co. Kildare town.
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