O'Callaghan had deal on Quarryvale - Gilmartin

Mahon tribunalProperty developer Owen O'Callaghan had an agreement that he could have as much retail development as he wished at Quarryvale, once John Fitzgerald became manager of South Dublin County Council, it was alleged yesterday.

Developer Tom Gilmartin told Mahon tribunal counsel Pat Quinn SC that Mr O'Callaghan had told him he wasn't concerned that councillors would cap retail development at Quarryvale at a council meeting on December 17th 1992, because "his friend John Fitzgerald was taking over South County Dublin".

"He had an agreement with John Fitzgerald, that after the zoning motion of that night, he could put in as much retail development as possible, once he was in charge of South County Dublin," Mr Gilmartin said. "He actually was bragging about it, he was going along with it because when the council split, he could put what he liked on the site."

Councillors voted to rezone Quarryvale at the December 17th meeting, but capped retail development at at 250,000 sq feet. Mr Gilmartin had hoped it would not be capped below 500,000 sq feet.

Mr Quinn read into the record a letter from Mr O'Callaghan to his bank manager in Cork following the December vote, to give "some insight into Mr O'Callaghan's thinking in relation to what happened".

The letter outlined that Quarryvale had been rezoned "despite a lot of opposition" and said "John Fitzgerald came on our side".

"As soon as the existing Dublin County Council is divided into three separate counties, and this will happen in January 1994, we will be in John Fitzgerald's new county, ie south Dublin, and we can then get as much retail space as we can fill," the letter said.

Mr Fitzgerald became the first county manager of South Dublin County Council.

The tribunal also heard from Noel Lawlor, brother of the late Liam Lawlor, who denied he collected £5,000 from the office of former Fianna Fáil press secretary Frank Dunlop in 1991.

Counsel for the tribunal, Patricia Dillon SC, said yesterday that Mr Dunlop had stated he gave Noel Lawlor £5,000 in cash for his brother in April 1991 at his office in Mount Street.

Mr Lawlor denied collecting the money and said "he never stood foot in Mr Dunlop's office".

"I remember that week very well . . . my father-in-law was dying in Our Lady's Hospice in Harold's Cross, my wife and I would have been attending him night, noon and morning."

"He subsequently died on the 14th of April, so for me to be collecting anything for anybody that week would not be the case."

He said Mr Dunlop did not hand him cash on April 5th or on any date.

He also denied asking Mr Dunlop for a further contribution of £3,500 on behalf of his brother.

Mr Lawlor did, however, agree that he received a cheque of £1,000 from Mr Dunlop in June 1992. He said the money was to be put towards the cost of a surprise party for his late brother, to celebrate the fact that he was 10 years in the Dáil.