Mansfield expects council to lose court challenge

The  property developer, Mr Jim Mansfield, believes he is getting "a rough doing at the minute" from South Dublin County Council…

The  property developer, Mr Jim Mansfield, believes he is getting "a rough doing at the minute" from South Dublin County Council and says he would be "amazed" if its High Court action against him over Weston Aerodrome succeeds.

He maintains that all the works he has carried out there fall within the category of "exempted developments" that do not require planning permission and, in any case, they were only intended to upgrade the aerodrome in the interest of safety.

For example, he said the carpark was provided because there was no parking on the site and the road outside was "always blocked with cars", making access difficult in an emergency, while the new control tower qualified as a "navigational aid".

"I'm completely happy that we're within our rights," he told The Irish Times. "If planning permission is needed to replace an old septic tank, it beats me." He had to get on with the job. "I haven't much patience and I don't make apologies for that."

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Asked about the planning history of his Citywest Hotel complex, Mr Mansfield said there was a lot happening at the time, including a disastrous fire. The hotel needed to be rebuilt and extended, and some of this was done in "bits and pieces".

He does not deny that much of it was built first and planning permission sought later. "I don't deny it at all. I would love to be able to put in for planning, but it could be a year before you get it." He insisted that the hotel always had a fire safety certificate.

Regarding Tassaggart House, he said this complex of historic buildings would not have survived at all if he hadn't roofed it.

The house was used to accommodate Citywest Hotel staff and its restoration was even recommended for an award by An Taisce.

As for the works carried out at the 700-acre Palmerstown Stud outside Naas, he said he had "done up" the house, spent €1 million on fencing, raised the ground level by a metre, installed lakes to deal with a flooding problem, and laid out an 18-hole golf course.

Mr Mansfield confirmed that the former South Dublin county manager, Mr Frank Kavanagh, works for him as a consultant.

"I never knew him when he was in the council, but when he retired I thought if I could get a hold of this fellow he'd know all the rules," he said.

He also confirmed that Cllr Colm McGrath (Ind) has a contract to provide security for the Citywest complex, through Essential Services Ltd, for which he receives €3,000 per week.

However, he insisted that no other councillor "ever got a shilling from me".

Mr Mansfield said he now had 613 people working for him, including 475 at the Citywest complex, without ever having received a penny in grant-aid.

He also contributed a total of €3.3 million towards the provision of a new sewerage system in the area.