Local swimming pool almost €5m over budget after ‘frustrating' 6-year project delay pain & new €20m final bill warning
The pool facility in Lucan in West
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Sinn Fein TD Eoin O Broin SAID ongoing delays have been 'enormously frustrating'
Credit: Damien Storan/PA Wire
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The Aura Lucan Leisure Campus is expected to open later this summer
Credit: PR Handout image
When it was originally costed in 2017, South Dublin County Council expected the final bill to be around €12.985 million.
A project schedule from the time said that once the contract was awarded, it should only take fourteen months to construct.
However, the
A series of updates to queries from councillors show how the opening day for the swimming pool and leisure centre kept shifting.
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In late 2020, a local representative was told the handover date was meant to be February 2021, but that this had been moved back to June 2021.
An update said: 'The project has been significantly delayed due firstly to poor weather conditions in the early part of 2020 and then the enforced closure of the site for a number of weeks during the COVID-19
In late 2021, another councillor was given an update saying the completion date was now likely to be in April or May of 2022.
That date then got pushed to August 2022 though even that proved hopelessly optimistic.
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A letter to him said: 'As you will be aware the project has been impacted significantly by various construction sector challenges.'
By last year, the project still wasn't complete with councillors told in August 2024 that the local authority was still working with the contractor to 'agree a revised programme.'
In February of this year, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin again sought an update and was told more resources were being provided to 'expedite project completion.'
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South Dublin County Council had originally refused to provide details of how much they had so far spent on the project.
However, following an appeal under FOI laws, they disclosed that costs so far were €17.87 million, which included €15.7 million in payments to the main contractor.
'ENORMOUSLY FRUSTRATING'
That is unlikely to be the final bill though, and local representatives have been warned that an overall cost of around €20 million can be expected.
Parts of the facility are in use, but the main swimming pool has yet to be opened to the public.
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Ó Broin said: 'The ongoing delays have been enormously frustrating, but I'm satisfied that the council have done everything in their power to expedite the project.
'What I would say is the way in which procurement rules are imposed on local bodies is far too rigid. It means that when something goes wrong, it's very difficult to resolve those issues in a timely manner.
'The council has done a large number of capital projects, including housing and community facilities, and none of those have had the kind of delays that this centre has.'
Asked about the project, South Dublin County Council said that the original contract price for the building, including VAT, was €13.5 million.
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They said significant construction price index inflation had taken place since then leading to a higher cost.
The council said delays in the project were regrettable but that they looked forward to the imminent handover of the gym and fitness studios later this summer.
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Construction began on the state-of-the-art family friendly leisure centre in 2019
Credit: PR Handout image
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The final cost of the project is now expected to rise to around €20 million.
Credit: PR Handout image
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