APPEALS AGAINST FASSAROE PLANS
DEVELOPMENT OF OVER 600 UNITS APPEALED TO AN BORD PLEANALA
PLANS for a major development at Fassaroe have been appealed to An Bord Pleanala, after permission was granted by Wicklow County Council.
The case is due to be decided by October. Appellants include Bray Clay Pigeon Club, William B. Somerville-Large, Stephen Byrne, Frank and Noreen Keane, Denis Sherlock and others, Barry and Tracy MacDevitt and others.
Cosgrave Property Group was granted permission for a mixed use development at Fassaroe and Monastery, comprising of 390 apartments, 268 houses, a neighbourhood centre, creche, district park, parking, and new road.
Bray Clay Pigeon Club said that the development could spell the end of their club, which has had its grounds at Berryfield for 40 years.
They said that the new residential buildings would be within shot range and not safe. They said that the shot noise would be a nuisance for residents. ‘Addressing complaints would require very expensive remedial solutions and would be way outside the meagre financial resources of the club.’
They said that they have established rights at the site over 40 years. They said that the plans for further phases would be incompatible with the the sporting activities of the club.
In their objection to Wicklow County Council, Barry and Tracy MacDevitt said that the the proposed Express Bus service and re-routing of the 185 does not support a development of this scale.
They remarked that this 658 unit development is just phase one of a much larger development of up to 2,200 units.
‘ The lands that this development is proposed to be built on were rezoned by the council for residential development many years ago in a previous County Area Plan at a time when it was intended to run the Luas to Fassaroe and link it to the Bray Dart Station,’ they wrote. ‘In other words, this rezoning was approved on the basis that proper capacity enabling transport and infrastructure would be in place to support a development of this size. The extension of the Luas to Bray (or Fassaroe) is not proceeding as previously planned, leaving no suitable public transport options for this development.’
They added that Monastery Road and Ballyman Road are ‘ totally unsuitable’ to take buses of the size of the express and the 185. ‘ They are narrow country roads with barely room for two cars which have limited footpaths and street lighting.’
William B. Somerville-Large wrote ‘It is therefore clear that the developer is not in a position to satisfy the necessary transport requirements to the proposed development, either by car or public transport, and must rely on the cooperation of other statutory bodies to provide the required facilities.
He quoted a letter from Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) to Wicklow County Council dated April 24, which stated ‘Despite the material submitted by the applicant, TII remains of the opinion that the transport demand attributable to the subject development cannot be satisfactorily accommodated by the proposed sustainable transport interventions (including public transport).’
Other concerns expressed in submissions made during the planning process included the need for schools and a garda station, the loss of the Enniskerry greenbelt, the scale of the three-storey units fronting onto Berryfield Lane, loss of wildlife habitats, strain on the water supply, and poor pedestrian linkage between the development and Bray.
Senior executive planner Edel Bermingham recommended refusal, in a report dated May 12, 2017, based on the absence of a Certificate of Authorisation from the EPA, and the scale of the retail development.
Director of Services Des O’Brien recommended conditions to address her concerns and permission was granted.