Meath County Council has issued a warning letter against the owner of two Georgian properties in the heritage village of Slane, Co Meath following unauthorised changes to the adjoining grounds.
Work outside the two houses, Mount Charles Lodge and Killryan House, was halted at the weekend after residents staged a protest and contacted the local council to intervene, according to Brian Taylor, a co-ordinator for planning with An Taisce in Co Meath. One of the houses is listed as a protected structure, while the other is on the list of proposed protected structures.
Mr Taylor said the protests followed the clearing of shrubbery, removal of garden gates, hedges and railings at Killryan House on Thursday, in addition to the sawing of trees outside Mount Charles Lodge on Saturday.
"You cannot do anything to protected structures without planning permission and without opening the plans up to public scrutiny. What this developer is doing is in contravention of the plans for Slane contained in the document Slane at the Crossroads," he claimed.
"On Saturday morning at 8.45, men arrived to start tidying outside one of the houses and then more vans arrived. These men produced chainsaws and it was at this point that concerned residents staged a protest and halted work. All persons and machinery were removed from the site by the council."
It is understood the developer of the property is Brian Conroy of Fastnet Holdings and Land and Heritage Properties. Efforts by The Irish Times to contact Mr Conroy last night were unsuccessful.
A spokesman for the planning department of the council confirmed a warning letter had been issued to the developer of the sites following an inspection of the grounds on Friday last.