Plans for district centre for Balgaddy opposed

A proposal to build a new district centre at Balgaddy in west Dublin would create a "walled hilltop fortress", a Bord Pleanála oral hearing has been told.

South Dublin County Council, rival developers, several local politicians and a community group are objecting to plans by Treasury Holdings to build a large shopping, residential, office and hotel complex on the site.

The design by Treasury's subsidiary, Everglade Properties, comprises 557 residential units, about 30,000 square metres of retail space and a hotel of up to 24 storeys in height.

Balgaddy was designated as the district centre for Lucan-Clondalkin as far back as 1972 but councillors subsequently made a controversial decision to allow Liffey Valley shopping centre to proceed at nearby Quarryvale.That decision is now being investigated by the Mahon tribunal.

Everglade's original plans for Balgaddy were refused by the council in 2002. It appealed to An Bord Pleanála, which invited it to revise its plans. However, Dietacaron, a company owned by rival property developer Owen O'Callaghan, took legal proceedings against the board's decision.

Mr O'Callaghan owns Liffey Valley and his company is an adjoining landowner in Balgaddy.

The High Court last year rejected Dietacaron's claim, thereby allowing the board's oral hearing to resume this week. At the hearing, Paul Hogan, senior planner with the council, likened Everglade's proposal to a "walled hilltop fortress" with large amounts of "dead frontage" and said it was contrary to proper planning for the area.

The council's submission criticised the lack of interaction between buildings and streets, claiming it would lead to an "oppressive, anti-human scale, windswept, canyon-like environment".

The council also argued that the proposal materially contravened its new development plan.

Everglade owns only 22 per cent of the land zoned for district centre use. The council recently applied to the Minister for Environment to create a strategic development zone (SDZ) in Balgaddy. It claims Everglade's "unacceptable" proposals exert "disproportionate influence" over adjoining zoned development lands.

Hazel Jones for Everglade said the company had been disadvantaged by the "significant delay" caused by High Court proceedings taken by a third party. She denied the development plan was materially contravened and said so-called "fast-track" procedures to set up SDZs were taking more than five years to implement.

Andy Lane, North Clondalkin Community Development Association manager, described the proposed development as "a castle stuck in the middle of a plain built to deter invaders or the local communities of north Clondalkin, southwest Clondalkin and Lucan.

"It says 'We don't want anyone from the area in here and we'll pull up the drawbridge at night."

Seán Ó Laoire, the architect who designed Everglade's proposals, responded: "One man's drawbridge is another man's ceremonial route."