THE Irish Government has agreed a deal to buy the lands connected to an historic property in Co. Kildare.
It was confirmed this week by the Office of Public Works (OPW) that 225 acres of land at Castletown House in Celbridge had been purchased on behalf of the State.
They had previously been privately owned, and over the years the OPW has sought to purchase them without success.
Most recently, in 2022, the OPW was outbid in a commercial best bids process and the lands remained in private ownership.
The Irish Government has purchased the lands around Castleown House in Co. KildareSince then, issues around access to the Estate have arisen and as a result, Castletown House was closed to the public in September 2023.
Despite engagement with the new landowner at the time a solution was not reached to fully resolve the access issues.
Now, with the lands under state ownership, full access is set to be enjoyed to the historic site.
Kevin Moran, the Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW, confirmed the deal.
“When I became Minister for the OPW in February this year I had three objectives in relation to Castletown,” Minister Moran said.
“The first was to get the OPW staff back to their place of work, this was achieved in April of this year,” he explained.
“The second was to re-open the House and parklands again to the public, this was achieved in July this year and the house re-opened for tours over the summer.
“I was also committed to resolving the vehicular access issue. I am delighted to confirm today that this third objective has now been achieved through the purchase of the lands, which includes the access from the M4 motorway.
“In announcing this I would like to thank the OPW staff that work at Castletown for their dedication and resilience over the last couple of years.
“I look forward to continuing to work with the local elected representatives, Kildare County Council and the local community in the weeks and months ahead”.
OPW chairman John Conlon said the deal had been a “long-term policy objective” of the organisation.
“It has been a long-term policy objective of the OPW to reunite the historic lands at Castletown and despite previous unsuccessful attempts to purchase these lands, we have now delivered an excellent long-term outcome for the State,” he explained.
“The benefits will accrue to the local community and visitors to the area for generations to come. I look forward to the OPW re-establishing Castletown House and Estate as a premier heritage attraction to be enjoyed by the people of North Kildare, as well as national and international visitors in the years ahead”.
See More: Castletown House, Celbridge, Co. Kildare, OPW
