Initial victory against Kilmainham plans
Plans by property developers to dwarf Kilmainham Jail and
surrounding residences with a large development have received a
set-back.
Dublin Corporation's Planning Department has sent the plans back
to the developers, Charmside, following a flood of objections
from local residents.
The plans had involved replacing the Rowantrees buildings
opposite the entrance to Kilmainham Jail with nearly half a
million square feet of office space, in three modern office
blocks - two of which would have risen six storeys above ground.
The plan also included a two-storey underground car-park for just
500 cars, despite them having assumed a work force of 3,000
people on the developed site. Residents had opposed the plans on
a number of grounds, namely the size, density, height and fabric
of the buildings. The increased level of traffic and the failure
of the plans to comply with Dublin Corporation's own Urban Design
Plan for Inchicore / Kilmainham, also factored among the
objections raised.
In rejecting the planning application, Dublin Corporation's
Planning Department have sought additional information on the
scheme, while at the same time asking that the plans be
substantially altered if they are to be considered again.
The alterations sought include reducing the scale of the
development, a greater diversity in the use to which new offices
are put and that the building be devised as a landmark of
excellent architectural standards. Residential uses and/or a
hotel should be considered for the site, the Corporation say and
the buildings should be integrated into the adjoining public
realm. ``Alternative architectural proposals would be more in
character with and would enhance the nearby Protected
Structures,'' Dublin Corporation say. They have also sought
archaeological reports and a ``sustainable transport plan'' for the
development.
Dublin South Central Sinn Féin representative, Aengus Ó Snodaigh,
has supported the campaign since its initial public meeting in St
James Hall in August. While continuing to be involved in the
committee, he's lobbying for the site to be bought by the
Department of Arts, Heritage, the Gaeltacht and Islands. Ó
Snodaigh says that he wishes to ensure that the Kilmainham
development would utilise the site's tourism potential, focussing
on the national monuments of Kilmainham Jail, the Royal Hospital,
Richmond Tower, and the old courthouse. ``We must enhance, rather
than detract from, the historical, archaeological and
architectural value of the area,'' Ó Snodaigh says. He cautioned
that speculators such as Johnny Rohan and Richard Barret of
Charmside ``don't just walk away from a site'', and that a long
fight against such a development could be ahead of local
objectors. The duo had been involved in the rejected Spenser Dock
project on the quays and in other contentious developments around
the city.
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