Seven former Garda stations were sold yesterday, at an auction which was the first of its kind in the history of the State.
There were a total of eight former stations up for sale. Lot one was Mallow Road Garda station, Co Cork, which had a guide price of €80,000 and was sold for €260,000. Lot two was Baldwinstown Garda station, Co Wexford, which had a guide price of €68,000 and was sold for €75,000.
Lot three was Cloone Garda station, Co Leitrim, which had a guide price of €55,000 and was sold for close to that sum immediately after the auction. Lot four was Grangemockler Garda station, Co Tipperary, which had a guide price of €55,000 and was sold for €103,000.
Lot five was Inchigeela Garda station, Co Cork, which had a guide price of €35,000 and was sold for €55,000. Lot six was Newtown Cashel Garda station, Co Tipperary, which was sold immediately after the auction for close to its guide price of €55,000.
Lot seven was Ardagh Garda station, Co Longford, which has a guide price of €125,000 but is still under negotiation. Lot eight was Lettermore Garda station, Co Galway, which had a guide price of €35,000 and was sold for €70,000.
A spokeswoman for the Office of Public Works (OPW), who had ownership of the stations, said she was “very happy” with the outcome of the auction. “There was very good interest in it today,” she said. “It was the first tranche of former Garda stations that have come on the market.
“We were very happy with the results. There was a whole mixture of people at the auction so it’s too early to tell what might happen to the stations. There was a big attendance there and quite a range of interest in the eight lots.
“Some of them were part of the recent closures of Garda stations. The one that wasn’t was lot eight, which was Lettermore station. That’s been vacant for some time. It was largely derelict. It wasn’t in great nick and had been closed since the early eighties.”
The OPW is to auction another batch of stations, which the spokeswoman said she expects to take place in May or June. Auctioneer Robert Ganly said approximately 75 people attended the auction, and that nearly 300 inquiries were received.
