So, what determines whether a planning application is refused, granted, delayed, or ultimately abandoned?
There is a widely held belief that the “right” planning decision is somehow inevitable (yes it can take a lot of time) but that it’s largely formulaic. It is policy driven. It can be a tedious process, with often endless requests, but nevertheless a fundamentally logical one. Decisions obey a stated set of rules and time frames. Policy reigns supreme. Decisions are largely consistent with other decisions for similar types of applications. The public (if not the applicant) can be guaranteed consistency over time. Well, up to a point.
Anybody with more than a couple of experiences (most private sector architects and nearly all developers) with Dublin City Council Planning Department will probably tell you differently.
Every developer and architect knows that the singular most important question to determine the likely success of any application is not the “where” (that zoning or this zoning) or the “what” (four floors versus six floors etc.) or even the secrets of the “when” (the Planning Departments own special seasons, “pre-Christmas rush” or the “summer lull”) but the “who” – the actual individual planner dealing with the application.
The “who” isn’t so much personal as it is personality types, or planner personality types to be more precise.
Read the full article @ The Dublin InQuirer
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