Cosgrave plan for apartments in Howth are rejected again

The Cosgrave Group has again failed in its latest attempt to secure planning permission to demolish the Howth Lodge Hotel in Howth, Co Dublin and replace it with 69 apartments and an underground car-park. An Bord Pleanala ruled that the scheme would be out of character with the existing pattern of development in the city, would seriously injure the amenities of the area and would detract from the coastal landscape. It also ruled that because of the scale, bulk and proximity of the western wing of the development to surrounding houses, it would damage the residential amenities of the houses by reason of overlooking and visual dominance. Last March the board also refused permission for 102 apartments on the site of the 50-bedroom hotel which was bought three years ago for £8 million.