An appeal against a decision by Dublin Corporation to grant planning permission for two adjacent developments of more than £120 million at Smithfield will begin tomorrow.
Nine appellants, including residents' groups, politicians and the national heritage group An Taisce, will oppose the planned schemes at the An Bord Pleanala oral hearing which is due to last three days.
The proposed developments include a 23-storey residential tower and a glazed bow-shaped office block which is 33.1 metres tall at its highest point.
The 76 sq m developments are earmarked for two adjoining sites on the west side of Smithfield bounded by Queen Street to the west, North King Street to the north and Haymarket to the south.
The site was used for many years by Duffy's scrapyard and the Linders car showrooms. The proposed development is opposite the hotel, restaurant and apartments development on the former Jameson distillery site.
The developer of the southern part of the site is Fusano Properties Ltd, while a Galway consortium, Kulling Properties Ltd, is behind the plans for a 1.15acre site on the northern section.
The schemes include a 50room hotel, a leisure centre, offices, apartments, retail and cultural facilities and car-parking spaces.
Mr James Kelly, an architect and Smithfield resident, is among the nine appellants who will challenge the developments on grounds including excessive mass and bulk.
He expressed "extreme concern" over the accuracy of the images used by the developers. Mr Tom Phillips from Frank L. Benson and Partners who will represent Kulling Properties Ltd said his clients would show that their photo-montage images were completely accurate. They would also respond to all other issues raised by the appellants.