609 Boherboy Demense housing plans are refused
By Brendan Grehan
A PLANNED 609 housing development in Saggart has been refused planning permission by An Bord Pleanála.
In their decision, ABP said the proposed development “results in a poor design concept that is substandard in its form and layout and lacks variety and distinctiveness”.
An artist impression of the Boherboy Demense plans
In July, Kelland Homes Limited and Durkan Estates Ireland Limited lodged a fast-track planning application for a Strategic Housing Development with ABP, outlining their plans for the construction of 267 houses, 158 duplex units, 184 apartments and a two-storey creche.
The proposed development was to be called Boherboy Demense.
In their application, it was proposed that 279 units on the western side of the property would be developed by Durkan and the remaining 330 units would be developed on the eastern side of the site by Kelland with access via two vehicular access points from the Boherboy Road.
The two developers previously submitted a joint planning application to South Dublin County Council in 2016, concerning the same site, for the development of a 218-unit residential development as part of the development of the Boherboy Neighbourhood within the Fortunestown Local Area Plan (2012).
The council granted planning permission for the development in July 2016, however this decision was successfully appealed to ABP who refused permission for the development in December 2016 as the board, at that time, was “not satisfied that the site is suitable for development across much of its extent” as there were a lack of documents that would show that the development would not be at risk of flooding.
It was also their view in 2016 that the proposed development “would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area”.
ABP gave three reasons for refusing permission.
Firstly they said the development as proposed “results in a poor design concept that is substandard in its form and layout and lacks variety and distinctiveness.”
In addition they stated that the proposed development “would not be in accordance with the Design Manual for Urban Roads and Streets issued by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government.”
Secondly, they said that with regard to the proximity of the Luas stops at Saggart and Fortunestown the board considered that the proposed development with a net density of 30 units per hectare to the south of the site would not be developed at a sufficiently high density to provide for an acceptable efficiency in serviceable land usage.
The density as proposed “would be contrary to the provisions of the Guidelines for Planning Authorities on Sustainable Residential Development in Urban Areas and in particular to sites serviced by existing and planned public transport.”
Thirdly, they stated that Environment Impact Assessment Report “does not identify or describe adequately the direct, indirect, secondary and cumulative effects of the proposed development on the environment” and they added that they were not satisified that the EIA report complies with the provisions of Eu Directive 2014/52/EU “particularly with regard to biodiversity, water, traffic and landscape and visual impact”.
