The State company that awarded the lease for the €62 million National Aquatic Centre to Dublin Waterworld Limited (DWL) was given documents by DWL, before the lease was signed, indicating that the centre would be managed by another company for Limerick businessman Pat Mulcair, the High Court was told yesterday.
However, Donagh Morgan, chief executive of Campus Stadium Ireland Development Limited (CSID), said CSID had never given formal consent to any such arrangement and he rejected a suggestion by counsel for DWL that there was no deception by DWL.
Mr Morgan agreed DWL had told CSID, in letters sent prior to April 30th, 2003 (when DWL was awarded the lease for the aquatic centre) that it proposed to go ahead with new funding arrangements for the centre which involved Mr Mulcair as a venture capital provider.
DWL was informed by CSID that it required formal consent from CSID for any such arrangement and no such consent was sought or given, he said.
It was only this year, after legal proceedings were initiated by CSID against DWL, that he became aware that DWL had, on the same day the lease was signed, assigned beneficial ownership of the lease to Mr Mulcair who in turn had entered into an agreement with Dublin Waterworld Management Limited that the latter would manage the centre on his behalf.
Asked by Mr Justice Paul Gilligan where CSID had told DWL it could not do what it proposed, Mr Morgan said the thrust of correspondence between CSID and DWL was to that effect. He agreed letters had not explicitly stated that if DWL did what it proposed to do, the deal was off.
Mr Morgan said the arrangement which DWL entered into with Mr Mulcair had affected DWL's obligations and had taken CSID out of the loop and reduced the level of profits which CSID would get from poolside receipts. He further agreed that DWL had told CSID prior to the lease being signed that it was proceeding with new funding arrangements.
The case continues today.
