McNamara wins new prison contract

A consortium led by Bernard McNamara, one of Ireland's most successful property developers, has been chosen as the preferred bidder to design and construct the new Thornton Hall prison complex in north Dublin as a public-private partnership (PPP) with the State.

Called Leargas, the consortium comprises Michael McNamara Construction, Barclays Private Equity and GSL, a prisons' operator. HKR Architects, a Dublin-based firm, has been contracted to design the facility, which is situated on a 150-acre, greenfield site about 10 miles north of O'Connell Street.

It is not clear how much the contract to build the new campus-style prison is worth. Reports, however, have suggested that Thornton Hall and a new 450-space prison on Spike Island in Cork will cost a combined €350-€500 million.

It is understood that three groups pitched for the lucrative prison contract. An announcement that the Leargas consortium has been chosen for the prison project is expected to be made in the next couple of weeks.

Under the terms of the PPP, Leargas will pay for the costs of the design and construction of Thornton Hall prison, which is set to house 1,400 inmates. It will then receive fixed payments from the State over a 25-year period. The consortium will also be responsible for the provision of certain services at the prison.

Construction is due to begin by the end of this year, with Thornton Hall scheduled to open before the end of 2010. The new facility will replace Mountjoy Prison, which was deemed by the Department of Justice not to be suitable for redevelopment given it location in the north inner city of Dublin. It was estimated that redeveloping the 20-acre site at Mountjoy would cost €400 million.

Thornton Hall will be about twice as big as Mountjoy, but the project has been mired in controversy since the Government announced the acquisition of the site in 2005 for €30 million. This equated to about €200,000 per acre, roughly twice the level being paid for land in the local area.

Residents in the area have also objected to its construction, citing poor road access to the site. The Government has also suggested relocating the central mental hospital in Dundrum to Thornton Hall.

The selection of Leargas followed a tender process handled by the Prison Service under the auspices of the Department of Justice.

Mr McNamara has had a busy 2007. He is a major investor in the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin, which reopened last month, after an €80 million-plus refit.

It also emerged recently that the property developer owns a significant stake in the Conrad Hotel on Earlsfort Terrace in Dublin. In addition, Mr McNamara recently agreed to acquire the Burlington Hotel for €288 million from JDH Acquisitions, owners of the Jurys Doyle group.

He was part of a consortium that bought the Montrose Hotel in Donnybrook from Jurys.