COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF LUCAN / PALMERSTOWN / NORTH CLONDALKIN AREA COMMITTEE

Tuesday, September 23, 2025

MOTION NO.13

MOTION: Councillor H. Farrell

To call for an independent public inquiry into the detailed reasons behind the unacceptable delays in the delivery of the public swimming pool at Lucan Leisure Centre, which commenced in May 2019, and still has no firm date for opening.

REPORT:

In light of the termination of PJ McLoughlins contract for the works at Lucan Swimming Pool, we have commenced investigating the status of a number of critical sub-contractors where collateral warranties were in place with SDCC. We are also in the process of preparing tender documents for the procurement of a replacement main contractor which will issue shortly.

As the overall contract for the building is still ongoing, it would be premature to commence a full investigation in advance of completion of the contract. Any investigation at this time, would not provide a full picture of the reasons for delay and/or non-performance, and would also require significant additional resources to feed into any such investigation. All available resources are currently focused on completing the remaining elements of the project, including confirming the relationships with critical sub-contractors, and the procurement / appointment of a replacement contractor.

The already identified reasons for PJ McLoughlin’s delays and non-performance have been communicated to the Elected Members and the public on many occasions since these delays became apparent. Upon completion of the project as a whole, we will carry out a full project review to identify insofar as practicable any previously unidentified reasons for delay and implement any lessons learned on similar projects under the Council’s remit.