Ambitious plans to create a mixed residential, office and cultural amenity development near Heuston Station in Dublin have been put on hold because of the property slump, junior minister at the OPW Martin Mansergh has revealed.

First proposed five years ago, Heustongate includes planning permission for a 32-storey apartment block which, if built, would become the tallest building in the country.

It would be almost twice the height of the current holder of the title, Siptu's Liberty Hall, which, ironically, is due to be demolished and replaced by its owners, the trade union Siptu.

Earlier this year, developer Seán Dunne's plan to construct a 37-storey apartment block on his Jurys/Berkeley Court site was turned down by Dublin City Council.

The sprawling 4.5-acre site is located across the road from Heuston Station and is currently home to the Revenue Commissioners and the Garda Car Pound.

Heustongate is also planned to house the National Centre for Science and Discovery, or 'Exploration Station' as it is known.

The OPW, the government's property arm, decided in 2003 to sell the site with full planning permission by public tender. This is part of its ongoing programme to maximise the gains to the state from a number of derelict or underutilised sites it owns in prime locations throughout the capital.

Under the proposed deal, the developer who secures the site – conservatively estimated at €100m – will pay for the construction of the Exploration Station which will then be handed back to the state.

The station represents the "community gain" provision set out in the planning permission attached to the state, said minister Mansergh.

But five years on, Mansergh told the Dáil last week, "No decision has yet been made as to the exact date on which Heustongate will be offered to the market, due to the current market uncertainties."