Richard Farrington (41), who will this morning formally lodge a planning application for a new super-hospital complex at Corkagh, close to the Naas Road in Dublin, is a low-profile property developer.
A member of a well-known family of grain merchants, Mr Farrington is from Dublin but moved to Co Limerick in recent years, where he is currently building a 113-unit housing estate in Adare. He previously developed a 323-house estate in south Dublin and holds an unspecified landbank in the Baldoyle area of north Dublin.
Mr Farrington's company proposing the hospital development is Abbeyrock Technologies Ltd. He is also a director of nine other companies, including Abbeyrock Developments, Abbeyrock Homes, Lowdell Limited and Leddy Building Services Ltd.
Mr Farrington told The Irish Timesthat, in the main, his property transactions tend not to become involved in the construction end of the business. A chartered surveyor's website yesterday put the estimated cost of the proposed buildings at between €350 million and €500 million.
Mr Farrington said he has had discussions with one of the State's principal builders over the development of the proposed hospital, but must have the support of the Government for the project. He said he was disappointed with the response of Minister for Health Mary Harney, as reported on radio yesterday, which he said was not based on knowledge of the project. Mr Farrington said he had published the details in an attempt to "let the people decide" the issue.
