The Lord Mayor of Dublin has said he is "appalled" at the decision of Dublin City Council to grant planning permission for a five-storey block of 53 apartments next to Booterstown bird sanctuary in Dublin Bay.
Mr Dermot Lacey said the council's planners "might as well have thrown the City Development Plan in the bin", adding he would join with Birdwatch Ireland, An Taisce and several residents' associations in the area to appeal the decision to An Bord Pleanála.
Permission was granted by the council on Friday for 53 apartments "in five interconnecting blocks ranging in height from three-storey plus penthouse to five-storey plus penthouse" with more than 100 parking spaces.
The four-acre coastal site straddles the boundary between Dublin City Council and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. The latter granted permission for a car-park and public park to Ashcastle Developments Ltd, which also hopes to build the apartments.
While Birdwatch Ireland is disturbed about the effect on the neighbouring bird life, both Mr Lacey and An Taisce are concerned at the precedent this decision sets.
The site is zoned under objective Z9 status, which means it is a special amenity site where residential use is "open for consideration".
Mr Lacey, who worked on the 1999 Development Plan, insists "residential use" for Z9 means small-scale building, such as a park ranger's house or a small craft shop.
"This disgraceful decision marks an attempt to overturn the Development Plan. It has been completely ignored," said Mr Lacey, adding it meant other Z9 sites around the city were now under threat.
Mr John Ducie, vice chairman of An Taisce, said the site next to the bird sanctuary must be preserved to safeguard the marsh. As soon as building started, he said, several species, such as Brent geese, would leave.
Since the marsh was laboriously cleaned following an oil spill in 1983, species such as kingfishers, redshank, snipe, herons and egrets have slowly returned.
Mr John Peart, chairman of Birdwatch Ireland, said building on the adjacent site would represent a "real threat" to "the last available marshland for birds in south County Dublin".
Mr David Jameson, co-director of Ashcastle Developments, insists a full Environmental Impact Statement has been carried out.
"We hope people will take time to look at the EIS, the ecology studies and take the plans on their merit. The architecture is of the highest quality and the park will be of significant amenity value," he said.
