COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF TALLAGHT AREA COMMITTEE
Monday, May 21, 2018
QUESTION NO. 16
QUESTION: Councillor C. O'Connor
"To ask the CEO to confirm plans for the establishment of new Enterprise Centres in the Tallaght area, will he appreciate the strong local support for such a move and will he make a statement?"
REPLY:
"The Council has provided/supported enterprise parks/units in Tallaght in Bolbrook, Brookfield and Killinarden that are managed locally through lease arrangements. These areas are intended to provide subsidised space with support services for new and existing start-ups to develop and progress to private industrial areas, ideally after 3 to 5 years.
Furthermore the Council recently carried out a feasibility study process to assess both the demand and optimum location for new Enterprise/Innovation Space in the County. The purpose of the study was to explore how the development of new, additional innovation centre space in the County could help to:
- retain more innovative businesses in the local area and prevent them from relocating elsewhere;
- attract more innovative businesses to the area, including inward investors; and,
- foster an entrepreneurial culture and ‘mind-set’ in South Dublin, increasing the number of start-ups, thereby increasing high quality job opportunities in the County.
It is imperative that any new Enterprise/Innovation Space is not simply a property development but should be an attractive visible cross sectoral hub for innovative entrepreneurs to locate in South Dublin which will support an enterprise and innovation culture. It should be an attractive space for entrepreneurs to locate in South Dublin and also retain and embed a supply chain of innovators that puts South Dublin firmly on the map as a business destination.
The study established what is currently available across the Dublin region, identified the needs and requirements for maximising opportunities in the sector and recommended best approaches to meeting those needs based on the County profile, existing supply and existing and emerging needs. It particularly noted a strong pipeline of demand for new innovation space in the County.
The process resulted in a shortlist of three potential options for new enterprise space in the County, namely:
- Option 1 – Greenfield site at Grange Castle Business Park.
- Option 2 - Tallaght Town Centre – County Hall/ITT/Hospital Corridor.
- Option 3 – Exisiting Bolbrook Enterprise Centre – Partas
Options 1 and 2 were viewed as the most likely options to achieve the headline objectives of delivery of a new enterprise/innovation centre of sufficient scale (approx. 3,000 square metres) in terms of creating a vibrant and dynamic business destination in a prominent business location. They benefit from concentrations of innovative and entrepreneurial businesses surrounding them, which will further support the creation of the ecosystem that any successful innovation centre needs to be part of. Option 3 does not have the sufficient scale to meet the headline objectives and will not be considered further as part of this process. However, it should be noted that a proposed redevelopment of that centre is progressing with substanial funding approved by Enterprise Ireland under its Regional Enterprise Development Fund 2017-2020 along with a contribution from the Council’s Business Support Fund, as agreed by the EETD SPC.
The report was discussed at the recent Economic Enterprise & Tourism Development SPC meeting and it was agreed that the Economic Enterprise & Tourism Development Department would now develop criteria to assess the final two shortlisted options (Grange Castle and Tallaght Town Centre) to determine the preferred location for potential development of new Innovation/Enterprise Space in the County and report back to the Committee forthwith so that a site selection, design and funding process can commence."