Cowen turns down priest's €25m loan [Laois Nationalist]
- Published: 05 February 2009
Source: Laois Nationalist
By: Michael Tracey
THE proposal to build two primary schools put forward by a Portlaoise parish priest on the grounds of Summerhill are now "dead in the water" following the government's decision not to take up the generous offer. The proposal would not only have seen the parish donate lands for the building of two new schools and the refurbishment of Scoil Bhríde in Knockmay but also the provision of a €25 million parish loan to the government to build the schools.
Following a recent meeting with Department of Education and Science officials, Fr John Byrne PP was told that they would not be taking up the offer due to a supposed EU procurement issue. Fr Byrne told the Laois Nationalist: "The application is dead in the water. I am bitterly disappointed that the proposal has not been accepted, as the services are badly needed. I had hoped the proposal, which had made a lot of sense, would have been accepted by the department."
The full proposal included two 32-classroom primary schools at Summerhill in Portlaoise and the refurbishment and extension of Scoil Bhríde in Knockmay to a 32-class primary school. The parish was to provide the ten-acre site, which it had purchased for €2.25m and would have also provided extra land needed for the extension already in its ownership. Fr Byrne's proposal would have seen the building and refurbishment of the schools financed by a parish loan of roughly €25 million to be paid back by the Department of Education over 15 years.
The parish, with the assistance of the Presentation Sisters, was undertaking the financing of the two building projects.
Fr Byrne said the parish had repeatedly met all the department's demands over the last 18 months to meet the necessary criteria. "We were told at first that they could not build the schools because they did not have the site so we went and secured a site at Summerhill. We then went through the tendering process of a design team for the two schools. We were then told the department did not have the finances to construct it. We went and secured the finance only to be told that it will now not be accepted," he said.
