Sinn Féin Leader Mary Lou McDonald and fellow Dublin Central TD Marie Sherlock of Labour have objected to a proposed 249 student bed space scheme for the site of the former Matts of Cabra pub in Dublin 7.
R & D Developments Limited lodged plans in January with Dublin City Council for the purpose built student scheme across two six storey blocks for the site at Fassaugh Avenue.
The former pub was the site of the murder of gang leader Eamon Dunne in 2010.
In a joint objection with local member of Dublin City Council, Seamus McGrattan of Sinn Féin, McDonald said her party “believes that this site should be used to deliver the affordable and social homes that are so badly needed in the local community”.
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“Homelessness is at an all-time high, and when ordinary workers and families cannot afford to purchase a home or afford rent, and this proposal does not address the housing needs in Cabra where there is already a huge demand for social housing,” they said. “The proposal does not align with the principle of creating sustainable and inclusive neighbourhoods.”
“This site represents a rare and valuable opportunity to deliver social and affordable housing in a well-established community,” they said, while warning that “approving this proposal would set an undesirable precedent for high rise buildings in a low-rise area”.
McDonald had previously opposed a seven storey build-to-rent scheme for the site that was refused planning permission by An Bord Pleanála in June 2022.
In her objection, Sherlock states that “this is the fifth proposed development for this site in the last 22 years and I am very disappointed to see that it, once again, contains a development that is not in the community’s best interests”.
Sherlock said that “residents of Cabra are keen to have this eyesore at this landmark location radically improved and for much needed residential development to be proposed and built and not that of student accommodation.
She said that there is a dire need for social and affordable housing in Cabra. Between Cabra and Finglas over 5,000 families are on the housing waiting list and transfer list and failure to develop this site for much needed housing would represent an enormous lost opportunity for the area.”
Planning consultants for the applicants, Brock McClure, said the site offers a significant opportunity for the delivery of purpose-built student accommodation and “the proposal is appropriate to the site and sympathetic to its history and current use”.
