Hibernia REIT plans to refurbish derelict Katharine Tynan House
THE literary links of poet Katharine Tynan to Whitehall, or Katharine Tynan House as it has come to be known, is what is driving a developer to refurbish the derelict building.
Hibernia REIT were requested to provide a rationale behind the proposed restoration of Katharine Tynan House for a community centre by South Dublin County Council.
Now, the applicant has submitted documentation detailing its reasoning.
“The proposal recognises the need to provide community facilities that promote alternative interests and seeks to adapt historical buildings to ensure their long-term viability,” a letter from Hibernia reads.
Heritage, culture, literature and horticultural interests “would be well catered for” should the plans get the green light.
It gave a list of potential activities proposed which include the potential to host events such as Red Line Book Festival or One Dublin One Book at the site.
Education, poetry and literary readings, youth cafés and youth programmes, yoga/Pilates, arts and crafts exhibitions, farmers’ markets and community allotments are included in their list of potential activities.
According to the developer, the proposal provides three large interconnecting rooms “which can be used for a variety of purposes, including providing classroom-type settings, meeting rooms and general community space for social congregation”.
An outdoor courtyard is also part of the plans.
The restoration of the home was part of the plans for the Newlands Farm site that were put forward by developer Hibernia REIT earlier this year, as part of a wider residential development.
However, these plans were dealt a blow after the Newlands Farm site was not rezoned for residential use by councillors in a County Development Plan meeting, which is required for residential development at the site.
However, Hibernia submitted a planning application for the project on June 4, detailing plans to refurbish the house which is a protected structure.
Those change-of-use plans included the refurbishment of the roof and external walls, reinstatement of windows, external doors, conservatory and glazed porch.
Constructing new internal stairs and doors, and two new single-storey, open-fronted structures on part of the footprint of an earlier outbuilding for toilets are part of the plans.
Proposals also include the refurbishment of historic garden walls and gates, upgrading the existing non-historic entrance and approach from Ballymount Road and the provision for on-site parking.
Back in July, the planning authority considered the proposals to be positive and that it “can be given significant weight in terms of planing merits”.
Given the historical nature of the building and with it being derelict, the applicant was requested to submit a full ecological survey, including a bat survey, biodiversity management proposals and mitigation measures.
In submitting the report to the council, it included recommendations for site lighting to be switched off or run at a lower output during inactive site hours and that it be controlled by motion sensors.
It was recommended that LED luminaires be used at a “warm white spectrum” while the light columns were recommended to be kept to 6m or less.
Extra details addressing surface water concerns, particulars for traffic and transport within the proposal, and a palisade fence on the site boundary were submitted as additional information.
