Lands owned by the controversial shelf company Jackson Way Properties Ltd in south county Dublin, will increase in value by 20 per cent following a local authority road building project, it was claimed yesterday.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is in the process of constructing the South Eastern Motorway and a valuer for the council Mr David Garvey claimed at an arbitration hearing that the motorway will increase the value of the lands by up to €88,000 per acre.
Jackson Way, which is under investigation by both the Flood tribunal and the Criminal Assets Bureau, is however claiming at the hearing in Dún Laoghaire that its lands will suffer serious "injury" as a result of the motorway project.
The motorway will cut in two its holding at Carrickmines which runs to over 100 acres and the company feels the motorway will act as a barrier to its lands ever being zoned for residential development. Most of the lands are zoned for agricultural use.
The company is claiming €47 million in compensation but the council believes it should be paid just €7.6 million.
Yesterday Mr Garvey, when cross-examined by Mr Hugh O'Neill SC, for Jackson Way, agreed the motorway had some "minuses" for the property including noise and intrusion but he said the negatives were far outweighed by the positive impact the motorway would have on the lands.
"The minuses of the (motorway) scheme for the land would be relatively minor. They revolve around things like noise and intrusion," he said.
He added that he placed only a "nominal" value on noise in his valuation.
Furthermore the intrusion of passing vehicles was "not a major factor", he said.
"The scheme is conservatively adding 20 per cent in value to the retained lands," he added.
Mr Garvey admitted that when he first started making his valuation he felt Jackson Way should be entitled to some compensation for "injurious affection" but he no longer believed this to be the case.
He felt the €7.6 million figure he came up with was "a fair figure".
A witness for Jackson Way, Mr John Morley of Hamilton Osbourne King, told an earlier hearing he believed the company should be entitled to over €11 million for the 20 acres acquired from it by compulsory purchase order for completion of the motorway plus €36 million for "injurious affection".
His valuation was based on all the lands being zoned residential.
The hearing continues today.