Apartments plan hit by childcare facility row

CONSULTANTS acting for businessman Denis O’Brien’s Purleigh Holdings have rejected a call from Dublin City Council that the firm’s €50m D4 luxury apartment plan should include a childcare facility.

Earlier this year, Dublin City Council put the 90 unit-development on hold after local opposition to the plan – with one residents’ group declaring “enough is enough”.

The 90 apartments are contained in five five-storey blocks.

Putting the plan on hold, the City Council pointed out for new residential schemes a childcare facility will be required unless there are significant reasons to the contrary, with a benchmark of one childcare facility per 75 dwellings.

Now, in response, consultants for Mr O’Brien’s firm, Hughes Planning and Development Consultants, had said that the provision of a childcare facility “is not warranted”.

The consultants state that based on census data, the apartments will accommodate 246 people including only nine children aged up to fours years ofage.

“We would not consider it practical to cater for such low child care demand. In addition, the site location, being backfill or infill in nature would not be conducive to offering a childcare facility to the wider community,” they said.

The consultants state that any demand for childcare from residents from the development can be absorbed by existing childcare facilities in the area.

Hughes Planning and Development Consultants lists 34 childcare facilities operating in the Dublin 4 area with seven located in Donnybrook.

The consultants state: “On review of this data, we would submit that given the number and variety of child-care providers in the area, that any demand for childcare generated by the proposed development can be met locally.”

The consultants also point out that 10 of the 18 three bedroom units in the development lie within the area of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and this application was granted planning on February 24th last.

The apartment plan to be decided by Dublin City Council is facing stiff opposition from locals.

A strident objection from the Greenfield Residents Group followed 30 residents from Nutley Square opposing the plan.