Local opposition to 800-unit apartment scheme on grounds of St Vincent’s hospital in Fairview

Plans for an 811-unit apartment scheme on the grounds of St Vincent’s hospital in Fairview in Dublin 3 are facing local opposition.

Dublin City Council has received more than 40 submissions concerning the €300 million scheme for the site on Dublin’s northside.

Those opposed to the project include a number of residents groups – the Griffith Court Residents Association, the Grace Park Wood Residents Association and the Residents of the Eastern End of Richmond Road Area. The apartments are set to be built across nine blocks rising from two to 13 storeys in height.

The Large Scale Residential Development (LRD) scheme comprises 494 apartments along with 317 build to rent units at Richmond Road and Convent Avenue, Fairview.

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The scheme on the 9.5 hectare (23.4 acre) site is being developed by Royalton Group, a British property development company, in partnership with the board of St Vincent’s hospital Fairview. A 10-year planning permission is being sought from the council.

Under the terms of the deal, Royalton is to construct a new 73-bedroom mental health facility for St Vincent’s, which is currently located in a listed building that is more than 100 years old.

In their objection, the Residents of Grace Park Wood Residents Association contend that “with a maximum height of 13 storeys, this height of residential accommodation is unprecedented in Drumcondra and the visual impact on the surrounding area is catastrophic”.

[ 811 apartment plan lodged for St Vincent’s site in Fairview ]

On their behalf, acting secretary Samantha Magee states that the association believes that the current application “should be rejected because it is a poorly conceived design which impacts adversely on the surrounding area and people”.

The Residents of Lomond Avenue, Fairview, have told the council that overall “we fear the proposed development, unless significantly reduced, will negatively impact the quality of life of current residents and prospective new ones should they occupy this development as well as the hospital patients”.

The Ierne Sports and Social Club based on Drumcondra is also opposed to the scheme. Catherine Lally has told the council that the club grounds borders St Vincents and that the 13-storey block “will be horrendously overwhelming from a visual aspect. We must object in the strongest manner as we feel the proposal cannot be put right by minor alterations or conditions”.

Architects for the scheme, Scott Tallon Walker, said the application provides the opportunity for a “new, high-density housing on underutilised land and to fully fund the construction of the new hospital and the refurbishment and reuse of the protected structures”.