Tralee Municipal District councillors have agreed to write to the Courts Service over concerns that a new courthouse for the town may not be delivered this decade.
No funding has been allocated yet for the construction of the new courthouse, with concerns that it now may be 2027 before funding is actually allocated to advance it.
In 2022, councillors voted to sell a portion of the Island of Geese site to the Courts Service for €160,000 for a new courthouse on the site, but no funding has been allocated to advance this project yet.
In a statement to Radio Kerry, the Courts Service now says no extra capital funding was provided in Budget 2025, or in the National Development Plan up to 2026 for construction of new regional courthouses.
The Courts Service says it intends to provide facilities at the Island of Geese as soon as funding becomes available, and it’s preparing its submission for any new National Development Plan.
This means funding may not be allocated to progress the new courthouse until at least 2027.
Labour councillor Terry O’Brien tabled a motion at this week’s Tralee MD meeting, which was passed, to request an urgent update from the Courts Service on the project.
He says the understanding at the time was that funding would be allocated within a year, if they agreed to sell the land back in 2022.
