An Taisce has appealed to An Bord Pleanála the decision by Louth county councillors to contravene a village development plan and grant permission to a Northern Ireland-based company to build 26 houses and apartments. The company lists as one of its directors Manchester-based property trader Brian Pepper.
A majority of councillors voted in favour of the proposal in May. The site is on the Dublin road in Dunleer, a village that has seen the price of property increase dramatically because of its proximity to the M1 motorway.
A number of appeals have been lodged expressing concerns about a souterrain, a motte and a mill on the site and identified in the plans submitted to the county council.
An Taisce's heritage officer Ian Lumley does not agree that there had been an adequate assessment of the archaeology on the site.
He says the location and proximity of the development to both the motte and souterrain "indicates that it was the area of earliest identified settlement around Dunleer and we consider that this proposal would inappropriately undermine its setting and relationship".
The site is just over 2.5 hectares (six acres) but under the local area plan, it was part zoned for residential and commercial use and part zoned for recreation, amenity and civic use. Councillors were told the company had agreed to transfer 1.64 hectares (about four acres) to the county council which will be transformed into a town park.
Mr Lumley submitted to An Bord Pleanála that the offer of land from the company "inappropriately influenced the council in considering a material contravention to be appropriate. The land which was proposed to be transferred is an area where development of any sort would not be achievable because of the archaeological constraints."
In a separate appeal, local residents suspect that a well discovered during archaeological works two years ago could be linked to St Bridget. "There is a strong tradition and connection between Dunleer and St Bridget," the residents' appeal says.
"The saint gouged her eyes out to repel the advances of a prince. Local folklore suggests that she washed her eyes out in a 'well' in Dunleer and recovered her sight . . . Dunleer people have speculated as to the whereabouts of this well; a medieval well was uncovered by the archaeologists whilst working at this development site in 2004."