Permission granted for 257 homes in Blackrock
THE way has been cleared for the construction of a major new development of 163 houses, 94 apartments and a childcare facility at Haggardstown, Dundalk after An Bord Pleanala gave the gohead to developers PJ and EJ Doherty for the project which was fast tracked under the Strategic Housing Development.
The new estate is being built on 7.6 hectares of land which lies 1.5km west of Blackrock and extends from Ard na Mara to the Dublin Road, which already includes the Earlsfort Estate.
57 number two-bedroom dwellings; 76 number three-bedroom semi-detached dwellings;Five number three-bedroom terrace dwellings;
13 number four-bedroom semi-detached dwellings; 12 number four-bedroom detached dwellings as well as of 94 number apartments or duplex units consisting of 19 number one-bedroom units, 38 number two-bedroom units and 37 number three-bedroom units, and the provsion of a creche, car-parking with electrical car charging points, bicycle storage, existing access from Dublin Road with associated upgrade works to facilitate vehicular, pedestrian and cycle access to include provision of a right turning lane; the provision of a cycle path along the Dublin Road, and internal roads and footpaths.
Twenty six units to be transferred to Local Authority under Part V.
A number of submissions were made which expressed concern that the proposed works would result in flooding of the adjoining Ard na Mara estate, that the proposed houses would be too close to the boundary with the houses on Ard an Mara and would negatively impact on the residential amenities in terms of overlooking, that it was out of keeping with area, and calling or 14% of the development to be kept as open space.
In granting approval, An Bord Pleanala made a number of conditions that aspects of the application be amended, It was also recommended that an internal road running parallel to the Dublin Road and giving access to Earlsfort to the north be redesigned as a home zone, as well as a road between two of duplex units. A footpath should be constructed to the boundary wall with Ard na Mara to allow for future connectivity and that open space be completed before the commencement of the development of phase 2.
It also ordered that house numbers 42 to 60 inclusive and duplex numbers 89 to 96 inclusive shall be omitted from the scheme and the areas be seeded and maintained until a further permission is secured for their development to avoid premature development, arising from flood risk concerns, in particular the measures proposed in the Neagh Bann Floor Risk Management Report.