Councillors in Dublin want new city border

Dublin City councillors are to attempt to redraw the city's boundary with Fingal County Council to reclaim areas of north Dublin for the city, including the site of the proposed Ikea superstore.

Councillors in the city's northwest constituency will next week start the process that would push the city boundary north to the M50 motorway, which they say has become the natural border of Dublin.

The realignment, which has cross-party support from northwest councillors and local TDs Roisín Shortall (Labour) and Pat Carey (Fianna Fáil), would bring up to 10,000 constituents into the city council area by ending the division of Santry, Ballymun and Finglas.

The city would also gain the 40-hectare site south of the M50 in Ballymun earmarked for Ireland's first Ikea furniture store, and hundreds of acres of reclaimed lands surrounding the former landfill at Dunsink.

Labour party councillor Andrew Montague said Santry, Ballymun and Finglas had been "artificially split in two", and residents were unhappy with the service provided by Fingal.

"This is a community request. People are dissatisfied with Fingal's performance in terms of road maintenance, tree pruning and the general response to the community, and are pushing to be made part of Dublin City."

He said Fingal councillors and the county management were neglecting the communities on the southern borders yet were set to reap the financial benefits from local developments.

"There's going to be huge money in rates coming from Ikea, as well as hundreds of jobs.

"The Ballymun regeneration project is under the control of the city council, apart from this one intrinsic part that has to go through the Fingal planning process."

Ms Shortall said planning decisions made by Fingal council had already had a detrimental effect on Finglas village.

"Fingal has approved 3,000 houses for the Meakstown area, just north of Finglas village, which will completely undermine the village. Fingal council seems primarily interested in the business community and are weak in their response to community concerns."

The current division of the county "makes no sense", Mr Carey said. "It's an artificial division that allows Fingal to hang on to its lucrative rates base."

The seven northwest area councillors are to vote to change the boundary at their monthly meeting next week. The proposal will then come before the whole city council, which is likely to support their decision.

The council must then submit a formal boundary alteration proposal to the Minister for the Environment, including the financial and organisational implications. There would also be submissions from the public and any other local authorities affected.

If there is an objection from a local authority the Minister can establish an independent boundary committee to examine the application. If the committee and the Minister decide in favour of the change the proposal is put before a vote of the Oireachtas.

Fingal County Council would not agree to a boundary change, county manger John Tierney said last night. "We don't see any reason to alter the boundary between ourselves and Dublin City Council, and would be strenuously opposed to any attempts to alter it."