After a bitter land feud that cost him €2m, Pat Kenny finds himself in a NEW battle of Gorse Hill
Kennys fear neighbours could see into couple’s bedroom
PAT Kenny is opposing plans for three apartment blocks and seven houses on a site at the centre of a bitter land feud several years ago.
The broadcaster famously went to war with a solicitor over a 0.2acre patch of scrubland adjoining their Dalkey homes, known as Gorse Hill, which was settled in 2008, costing him and his wife Kathy an estimated €2million.
Now that same neighbour’s land has been sold to a developer for €3.17million with plans to build 19 apartments in three blocks – ranging up to four storeys along with five three-bedroomed homes and two semi-detached homes on the site.
In their latest objection to an adjacent build, the Newstalk presenter and his wife raise several concerns in their 16-page complaint. The severity of Ireland’s housing crisis gets a mention and they insist they have ‘no desire to object to every development proposal’.
One key concern is that neighbours in the new apartment development will be able to see into the couple’s and their daughter’s bedrooms.
They say ‘any roof terrace or window would be less than 15 metres from our daughter’s bedroom window and 19m from our bedroom window’.
They point out that the ground level of their home ‘The Anchorage’ is 3.5m below the ground level of the Duplex Apartment block G&H. They state: ‘On our outdoor dining patio, we would be facing a construction with a roof line some 11 metres above us, denying us light and privacy.’
The Kennys state that the loss of light to their property ‘would be disastrous’. But a range of reasons for Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council to refuse planning to the development aimed at empty nesters looking to downsize have been raised in the 16-page Kenny objection.
The Kennys, in their objection, state that the proposal, by reason of its scale, height and design, would have an overbearing visual impact and be seriously injurious to the setting, amenity and appreciation of neighbouring properties.
They also say the plan is ‘illthought’ and would result in the removal of several trees, which would be seriously injurious to the amenities of the upmarket area and depreciate the value of property there.
Maple Tree House, standing on just under an acre, was at the centre of a legal row in 2006 when then owners, late solicitor Gerard Charlton and family, went to battle Pat Kenny over a 0.2-acre rocky outcrop adjoining their homes.
The dispute went as far as the High Court until an agreement was reached in 2008 whereby the Kennys agreed to buy the plot of land in a deal, which, along with legal fees, reportedly cost €2million.
Bartra Capital Property, the architects for the apartment project, said that great care has been taken to protect privacy between the proposed units and existing houses.
Consultants for Bartra have told the council that the seven houses are modest in size for the area and are either terraced or semi-detached. The consultants state that the 19 apartments are generous in size and will provide an attractive and sustainable alternative for many residents in the area particularly ‘empty nesters’ wishing to downsize from the larger family homes but wanting to remain in the area.
‘Ireland is suffering a housing crisis’
Along with the Kennys, 11 other objections have been lodged by locals in the plush south Co. Dublin suburb.
The Kennys state: ‘We have no desire to object to every development proposal, but we seek only to have appropriate development in terms of scale and function.’
They add: ‘At the outset, Ireland is undergoing a housing crisis. Therefore, it is incumbent to realise the development potential of serviced-residentially zone [sic] land.’
The Kennys’ extensive and strenuous objections relate to density, scale and massing, design, traffic impact, impact on trees and habitat and residential amenity.
They include that the proposed development by itself, or the precedent it would set, would adversely affect the use of the shared access lane from Harbour Road.
The site is just 200m from upmarket Dalkey’s Bulloch Harbour.
Their objection also states: ‘In my opinion, the proposed development by the applicant is not in compliance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.’
The objection states that if permitted, the development ‘would detrimentally impact on The Anchorage’ and other residential properties in the area.
The objection adds: ‘It would also set a precedent that could ultimately seriously damage the character of the area.’
The Kennys state that the proposed development would materially contravene the council’s development plan’s policies and objectives for the subject site ‘and would have a detrimental impact on its character’.
A decision is due on the application before the end of this month.