Dublin city council is investigating an alleged breach of planning permission at a concrete works in the East Wall area owned by Mexican cement giant Cemex.
The council issued a warning letter to the buildings materials company in July over activity at its concrete works at East Wall Road. A spokesman for the council said it had received correspondence from Cemex outlining the company's position and was now investigating the matter.
Cemex Ireland, established in 1965, is one of the largest building materials groups in the country and is one of CRH's chief rivals. Its parent firm is the largest building materials supplier in the world and the third-largest cement producer. The company operates at several sites in Dublin.
A spokeswoman for Cemex said it had made its position clear in correspondence with the council and would not comment further.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Sunday, 15 November 2009
Developers look for buried treasure...
The property market is dead so developers are turning to graveyards as a way of utilising their land.
Clare builder Bernard McNamara has told Fingal County Council he has a "particular interest in establishing a burial ground" at Priorswood House in Castleknock, west Dublin.
"There are currently 37 graveyards in use in the county, many of these have reached or are nearing full capacity," a submission on behalf of McNamara's company Versonwood states.
It also says that the "landowner is aware that the county council has been actively pursuing the acquisition of land for a new burial ground in the area''.
McNamara is not alone. Michael and Tom Bailey, who own Bovale, want to open a cemetary on part of a 106 acre site they own in Balgriffin near Portmarnock. The lands are currently zoned green belt and are located with the outer public safety zone of the airport so "a cemetery would be a suitable use, along with residential below 60 persons per half hectare".
The graveyard would be an extension to the existing 4.2 acre cemetery at Balgriffin and the land would also be suitable for a "crematorium facility".
It says this would "provide for the needs of north Dublin" for a period of up to 25 years. The developers follow in the footsteps of businessman Ben Dunne who planned to open a cemetery in the London suburb of Wimbledon. He said earlier this year that the planners will not now allow a graveyard on the 20-acre site, which he bought for about £3m.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Clare builder Bernard McNamara has told Fingal County Council he has a "particular interest in establishing a burial ground" at Priorswood House in Castleknock, west Dublin.
"There are currently 37 graveyards in use in the county, many of these have reached or are nearing full capacity," a submission on behalf of McNamara's company Versonwood states.
It also says that the "landowner is aware that the county council has been actively pursuing the acquisition of land for a new burial ground in the area''.
McNamara is not alone. Michael and Tom Bailey, who own Bovale, want to open a cemetary on part of a 106 acre site they own in Balgriffin near Portmarnock. The lands are currently zoned green belt and are located with the outer public safety zone of the airport so "a cemetery would be a suitable use, along with residential below 60 persons per half hectare".
The graveyard would be an extension to the existing 4.2 acre cemetery at Balgriffin and the land would also be suitable for a "crematorium facility".
It says this would "provide for the needs of north Dublin" for a period of up to 25 years. The developers follow in the footsteps of businessman Ben Dunne who planned to open a cemetery in the London suburb of Wimbledon. He said earlier this year that the planners will not now allow a graveyard on the 20-acre site, which he bought for about £3m.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
D4 residents object to RTE development plans
The residents' association on Ailesbury Road, where billionaire Dermot Desmond and developer Bernard McNamara have homes, are objecting to RTE's redevelopment plans for its Donnybrook headquarters.
In a submission to Dublin City Council, the association said it objects "most strongly" to RTE's ambitious plans to replace its existing facilities at the 32-acre site on a phased basis over a 10- to 15-year period. The '2025 Project' would see the demolition of the current television centre, radio centre, sports club, library and multi-storey car park to make way for new facilities housed in three blocks totally 103,553 square metres in size space. The blocks would vary in height from 19.5 metres to 36 metres. RTE has also applied for the rezoning of the site to allow for more intensive development.
The residents' association says it objects to the "massive scale" of the proposal saying that it is "inappropriate" for the surrounding residential area. "Even the smallest of the three blocks rises to 19 metres in height. In addition, it is proposed that several large satellite dishes be mounted on the rooftops of these blocks, further despoiling the skyline," association chairman Patrick Gavin writes. The association is also concerned about new access points to the site and the proposal to provide 800 parking spaces saying this "guarantees a worsening of traffic flow" on the already congested N11.
The height of the proposal has also inspired objections from a number of individual residents on Ailesbury Road, Nutley Road and Seaview Terrace, which one of the proposed buildings will back onto, as well as the Nutley and Ailesbury Court Residents' Associations.
The German embassy, which owns a building on Seaview Terrace, has also made a submission requesting that all security regulations in relation to the project are double checked with their Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Berlin. A spokesman said that this was standard practice for the embassy.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
In a submission to Dublin City Council, the association said it objects "most strongly" to RTE's ambitious plans to replace its existing facilities at the 32-acre site on a phased basis over a 10- to 15-year period. The '2025 Project' would see the demolition of the current television centre, radio centre, sports club, library and multi-storey car park to make way for new facilities housed in three blocks totally 103,553 square metres in size space. The blocks would vary in height from 19.5 metres to 36 metres. RTE has also applied for the rezoning of the site to allow for more intensive development.
The residents' association says it objects to the "massive scale" of the proposal saying that it is "inappropriate" for the surrounding residential area. "Even the smallest of the three blocks rises to 19 metres in height. In addition, it is proposed that several large satellite dishes be mounted on the rooftops of these blocks, further despoiling the skyline," association chairman Patrick Gavin writes. The association is also concerned about new access points to the site and the proposal to provide 800 parking spaces saying this "guarantees a worsening of traffic flow" on the already congested N11.
The height of the proposal has also inspired objections from a number of individual residents on Ailesbury Road, Nutley Road and Seaview Terrace, which one of the proposed buildings will back onto, as well as the Nutley and Ailesbury Court Residents' Associations.
The German embassy, which owns a building on Seaview Terrace, has also made a submission requesting that all security regulations in relation to the project are double checked with their Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Berlin. A spokesman said that this was standard practice for the embassy.
Sunday Tribune
www.buckplanning.ie
Luas trams will not stop at new Brennanstown station
LUAS TRAMS will not stop at a new station being built in south Dublin because development planned for the area has not materialised, the Rail Procurement Agency (RPA) has said.
A new Luas line from Sandyford to Cherrywood in south Dublin is currently under construction, and is expected to be operational next autumn.
Costs for the development have been estimated at €40 million a kilometre.
Eleven stops will be constructed along the B1 line, including at Ballyogan, Leopardstown, Carrickmines and Cherrywood.
However, although a stop is being built at Brennanstown, off the N11 near Cabinteely, Luas trams will not stop there. New housing developments in the area had been and are being marketed on the basis of proximity to the Luas stop.
A spokesman for the RPA said the area around the Brennanstown stop had not developed in the way that was expected.
He said the road infrastructure around the stop had not been built.
“There is no way passengers can get in and out,” he said.
It was not the responsibility of the RPA to provide access roads, he added.
“It is really a matter of how the area has developed.”
Fine Gael TD George Lee said the decision not to stop at the station would be a “a kick in the teeth” for local residents.
“This will come as a major shock to local residents, many of whom bought apartments and houses in the area at the height of the boom in the expectation that they would have a Luas stop on their doorstep in the near future.
“These are the same people who are suffering terribly from negative equity,” Mr Lee added. “Plans to deprive them of a Luas service is like kicking them when they are down.”
He said he understood the Rail Procurement Agency was concerned that the demand for a Luas service would not be sufficient due to the number of empty apartments in the area.
He said he would raise the matter with Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey.
“I am calling on the Minister to ensure that the Brennanstown stop opens from day one when the Luas line is extended.”
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
A new Luas line from Sandyford to Cherrywood in south Dublin is currently under construction, and is expected to be operational next autumn.
Costs for the development have been estimated at €40 million a kilometre.
Eleven stops will be constructed along the B1 line, including at Ballyogan, Leopardstown, Carrickmines and Cherrywood.
However, although a stop is being built at Brennanstown, off the N11 near Cabinteely, Luas trams will not stop there. New housing developments in the area had been and are being marketed on the basis of proximity to the Luas stop.
A spokesman for the RPA said the area around the Brennanstown stop had not developed in the way that was expected.
He said the road infrastructure around the stop had not been built.
“There is no way passengers can get in and out,” he said.
It was not the responsibility of the RPA to provide access roads, he added.
“It is really a matter of how the area has developed.”
Fine Gael TD George Lee said the decision not to stop at the station would be a “a kick in the teeth” for local residents.
“This will come as a major shock to local residents, many of whom bought apartments and houses in the area at the height of the boom in the expectation that they would have a Luas stop on their doorstep in the near future.
“These are the same people who are suffering terribly from negative equity,” Mr Lee added. “Plans to deprive them of a Luas service is like kicking them when they are down.”
He said he understood the Rail Procurement Agency was concerned that the demand for a Luas service would not be sufficient due to the number of empty apartments in the area.
He said he would raise the matter with Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey.
“I am calling on the Minister to ensure that the Brennanstown stop opens from day one when the Luas line is extended.”
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Coffee houses 'a third place' between work and home
EFFORTS TO revive Dublin’s 18th-century tradition of lively coffee houses are to be actively supported by Dublin City Council, a conference on “cafe culture” heard yesterday.
The conference was told by Dublin City architect Dick Grogan that a high-level group was seeking ways to promote activities such as coffee houses, which he said had an important role in fostering discourse within the city and “enlivening the public realm”.
The conference was organised by the Cafe Culture Project, which included many of those who campaigned to keep Bewleys open in Grafton Street in 2004.
The conference also featured a number of audience renditions of Leo Maguire’s Dublin Can be Heaven, along with lots of sticky buns and coffee.
Prof Kieran M Bonner of St Jerome’s University, Canada, said coffee houses, like pubs, were essentially a “third place” between the private realm of home and the place of duty which was work. The third place was a forum for public discourse, enjoyed particularly by lawyers, actors, journalists and politicians and one in which Dublin had a long tradition, he said.
He postulated the theory that a decline of the “third place” represented a decline in the life of the city, with the urban environment becoming just a “passageway” between work and home. This may have been why, he suggested, the threatened closure of Bewleys “had raised an issue of whether Dublin was in danger of losing its soul”.
Actor Glynis Casson read from a history of Bewleys by journalist and author Hugh Oram, which recalled the cafes as forums for Dublin characters such as
Micheál MacLíammóir, “with a cape and a magnificent toupee”, singer and wit Noel Purcell, author JP Donleavy and broadcaster Terry Wogan, among others.
Divisional librarian with Dublin City Council Maire Kennedy said 18th-century Dublin had a rich tradition of coffee houses, in which lawyers particularly met to gossip and swap news. Printers and publishers as purveyors of the news were also popular in the coffee houses, she said.
One late 18th-century coffee house at the Royal Exchange later became City Hall where the city council now meets, a fact recalled by Councillor Oisin Quinn.
The chairwoman, journalist Victoria White, said she was “only here for the coffee” but the gathering was fortunate to have Mr Gleeson as he was developing the city development plan.
After a number of coffee house owners said they were in difficulty because of high rents and competition from international chains with deep pockets, Mr Gleeson said the city council might relax licensing regulations for cafes using outside seating.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
The conference was told by Dublin City architect Dick Grogan that a high-level group was seeking ways to promote activities such as coffee houses, which he said had an important role in fostering discourse within the city and “enlivening the public realm”.
The conference was organised by the Cafe Culture Project, which included many of those who campaigned to keep Bewleys open in Grafton Street in 2004.
The conference also featured a number of audience renditions of Leo Maguire’s Dublin Can be Heaven, along with lots of sticky buns and coffee.
Prof Kieran M Bonner of St Jerome’s University, Canada, said coffee houses, like pubs, were essentially a “third place” between the private realm of home and the place of duty which was work. The third place was a forum for public discourse, enjoyed particularly by lawyers, actors, journalists and politicians and one in which Dublin had a long tradition, he said.
He postulated the theory that a decline of the “third place” represented a decline in the life of the city, with the urban environment becoming just a “passageway” between work and home. This may have been why, he suggested, the threatened closure of Bewleys “had raised an issue of whether Dublin was in danger of losing its soul”.
Actor Glynis Casson read from a history of Bewleys by journalist and author Hugh Oram, which recalled the cafes as forums for Dublin characters such as
Micheál MacLíammóir, “with a cape and a magnificent toupee”, singer and wit Noel Purcell, author JP Donleavy and broadcaster Terry Wogan, among others.
Divisional librarian with Dublin City Council Maire Kennedy said 18th-century Dublin had a rich tradition of coffee houses, in which lawyers particularly met to gossip and swap news. Printers and publishers as purveyors of the news were also popular in the coffee houses, she said.
One late 18th-century coffee house at the Royal Exchange later became City Hall where the city council now meets, a fact recalled by Councillor Oisin Quinn.
The chairwoman, journalist Victoria White, said she was “only here for the coffee” but the gathering was fortunate to have Mr Gleeson as he was developing the city development plan.
After a number of coffee house owners said they were in difficulty because of high rents and competition from international chains with deep pockets, Mr Gleeson said the city council might relax licensing regulations for cafes using outside seating.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Viaduct commuters 'prefer buses'
Hundreds of north Dublin commuters will continue travelling by bus instead of train despite the Malahide viaduct reopening tomorrow, it was claimed today.
Bus chiefs agreed to keep the 33X and 33D replacement services operating after disgruntled rail passengers said they found them quicker and less crowded.
Dublin Bus said the routes would be kept going for the next two weeks and scaled down gradually, but they could become permanent.
Fianna Fáil Dublin North TD Michael Kennedy, who campaigned for the continuation of the replacement services, said he believed the demand was there.
“I’m fairly confident from the discussions I’ve had with the commuters that there’s a significant amount of those people that will prefer buses in the future,” he said.
“People are showing a preference for the bus because it gets them closer to their homes and they don’t have to walk or drive to the station.”
Mr Kennedy said passengers felt the train was slower and they were able to get a seat on the bus. “Hundreds of people have told me they would transfer to the buses,” he said.
There was just one 33x from Skerries to Dublin City Centre before the viaduct collapse, increased to 20 after the incident. There will be 13 inbound and outbound from tomorrow.
There was no 33D, but four now run to and from Donabate train station and Tara Street. Each double-decker bus has a seating and standing capacity of around 92.
A Dublin Bus spokeswoman said: “Dublin Bus is aware that people’s travel patterns have changed over the weeks and is committed to continue to carry these people.”
Iarnród Éireann said it accepted passengers’ travel plans had changed but were confident customers would return to the service. A spokesman said packed and busy commuter trains were a feature of city life.
Rail bosses have also assured passengers the Malahide viaduct would be safe to
use when it reopened tomorrow morning. Test trains weighing 75 tonnes each have been operating on the repaired line, which collapsed into the estuary three months ago.
An Iarnród Éireann spokeswoman said: “They’d be the heaviest rolling stock over the lines.
Engineers are going very slowly over the track to make sure that nothing appears when they’re testing and there is no stress on the track.”
Although a full accident report into the incident will not be published until the new year, the rail firm maintains that erosion of the weir at seabed level caused the support to one pier to be undermined.
Repair works costing €4 million to restore the viaduct included rebuilding the pier and strengthening foundations, strengthening all the piers along the viaduct and relaying the track.
Speed over the line will be reduced to 25mph for the first two weeks, before being raised to 50mph for another fortnight and then eventually 90mph.
On August 21st, when a train driver spotted the signs of subsidence on the track, all trains were stopped before a 20m section of the viaduct collapsed into the sea.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Bus chiefs agreed to keep the 33X and 33D replacement services operating after disgruntled rail passengers said they found them quicker and less crowded.
Dublin Bus said the routes would be kept going for the next two weeks and scaled down gradually, but they could become permanent.
Fianna Fáil Dublin North TD Michael Kennedy, who campaigned for the continuation of the replacement services, said he believed the demand was there.
“I’m fairly confident from the discussions I’ve had with the commuters that there’s a significant amount of those people that will prefer buses in the future,” he said.
“People are showing a preference for the bus because it gets them closer to their homes and they don’t have to walk or drive to the station.”
Mr Kennedy said passengers felt the train was slower and they were able to get a seat on the bus. “Hundreds of people have told me they would transfer to the buses,” he said.
There was just one 33x from Skerries to Dublin City Centre before the viaduct collapse, increased to 20 after the incident. There will be 13 inbound and outbound from tomorrow.
There was no 33D, but four now run to and from Donabate train station and Tara Street. Each double-decker bus has a seating and standing capacity of around 92.
A Dublin Bus spokeswoman said: “Dublin Bus is aware that people’s travel patterns have changed over the weeks and is committed to continue to carry these people.”
Iarnród Éireann said it accepted passengers’ travel plans had changed but were confident customers would return to the service. A spokesman said packed and busy commuter trains were a feature of city life.
Rail bosses have also assured passengers the Malahide viaduct would be safe to
use when it reopened tomorrow morning. Test trains weighing 75 tonnes each have been operating on the repaired line, which collapsed into the estuary three months ago.
An Iarnród Éireann spokeswoman said: “They’d be the heaviest rolling stock over the lines.
Engineers are going very slowly over the track to make sure that nothing appears when they’re testing and there is no stress on the track.”
Although a full accident report into the incident will not be published until the new year, the rail firm maintains that erosion of the weir at seabed level caused the support to one pier to be undermined.
Repair works costing €4 million to restore the viaduct included rebuilding the pier and strengthening foundations, strengthening all the piers along the viaduct and relaying the track.
Speed over the line will be reduced to 25mph for the first two weeks, before being raised to 50mph for another fortnight and then eventually 90mph.
On August 21st, when a train driver spotted the signs of subsidence on the track, all trains were stopped before a 20m section of the viaduct collapsed into the sea.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Council defends Castletown plan
Kildare County Council has defended its decision to grant planning permission for a housing estate on protected lands opposite Castletown House in Celbridge.
Senior executive planner Aoife Brangan told a Bord Pleanála hearing that the council stood over its decision to approve the construction of 84 houses.
The developers, Devondale Ltd, are asking An Bord Pleanála to grant permission for 101 houses on the site, which is on the opposite side of the river to the early 18th-century stately home. Several appellants said the proposal conflicts with the county development plan.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
Senior executive planner Aoife Brangan told a Bord Pleanála hearing that the council stood over its decision to approve the construction of 84 houses.
The developers, Devondale Ltd, are asking An Bord Pleanála to grant permission for 101 houses on the site, which is on the opposite side of the river to the early 18th-century stately home. Several appellants said the proposal conflicts with the county development plan.
Irish Times
www.buckplanning.ie
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