A new valuation report for the site of a proposed super-prison at Thornton Hall said it sat on some of the most valuable agricultural land in Ireland.
The valuation put an estimated price of €6.5 million on the 164-acre property which was bought for almost €30 million in 2005 as part of plans for the relocation and subsequent redevelopment of the Mountjoy Prison campus in Dublin.
The Department of Justice said the revised valuation gave a fairer value for the property saying there was “significant demand for agricultural land in Dublin” and that a prior estimate of €2.7 million was too low.