Residential towers proposed for Dublin’s docklands have been denied planning permission. The 1,008-home Waterfront South Central scheme proposed by developer Ronan Group was refused permission by the appeals committee of An Bord Pleanala, the Irish planning authority.
The scheme would include two towers of 44 and 45 storeys, and would have Ireland’s highest viewing deck, as well as a number of amenities for the community, including business incubators, farmers’ market and "waterfront townhall".
The authority concluded that it should reject the project after a High Court ruling last November found that it was obliged to follow height limits in force in the area.
Waterfront South Central had been strongly opposed by Dublin council planners. Their 63-page submission to An Bord Pleanala that the tower represents overdevelopment and was "an inadequate design response to this sensitive site, would be of insufficient architectural quality, and if permitted would result in a poor placemaking outcome", reports The Journal.
It was also opposed by An Taisce, the National Trust for Ireland. Kevin Duff, a Dublin council planning officer and official at the trust, told the appeals board that the type of housing proposed in the scheme was "rarely affordable and most likely to end up as corporate letting with little or no contribution to the housing supply or the housing crisis".
The scheme was defended by the Docklands Business Forum.
Image: Ronan Group’s rendering of the proposed scheme
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