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Housing crisis: Planners reject 120 new apartments over lack of three-bed units

Plans for over 120 new apartments in the Cork suburb of Ballincollig have been refused planning permission by An Bord Pleanála over the absence of three-bed or larger units in the development. The ruling represents a setback for building firm O'Flynn Construction, which had sought approval for the development of 123 units in three apartment blocks up to six storeys in height at Old Fort Road, Ballincollig, Co Cork. Advertisement The proposed development consisted of 84 two-bed apartments and 39 one-bed apartments. The plans on a 1.065-hectare site also provided for a creche and multi-purpose amenity room. The company had sought planning permission for the scheme under the planning process for strategic housing developments which does not require the plans to be initially assessed by the relevant local authority, Cork City Council. However, An Bord Pleanála said the Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028 sets out clear requirements on the mix of units within any new development. Advertisement It states that a minimum of 25 per cent of units in any new development of over 50 dwellings must have three bedrooms and a minimum of 10 per cent must have four or more bedrooms. The plans for the Old Fort Road site also exceed the maximum permitted proportion of smaller one- and two-bed units at 25 per cent and 40 per cent respectively. O'Flynn Construction argued that household sizes both nationally and in Cork were getting smaller. The company claimed the proposed development would appeal to a broad range of tenants by focusing on providing smaller units, affordability and quality housing. Advertisement However, An Bord Pleanála said the developer had not provided any justification why exceptional circumstances or flexibility should be used to its proposed mix of units. The board claimed the issue had not been addressed in a material contravention statement submitted by O'Flynn Construction which also concerned density and building height. An inspector with An Bord Pleanála said the unit mix would require 'a complete redesign' in order to comply with the development plan that would ultimately reduce the number of apartments in the scheme. Concerns were raised by several parties about the proposed development including the Waltham Abbey Residents Association whose estate adjoins the site being developed by O'Flynn Construction. Advertisement They claimed the density of the housing scheme was well in excess of recommended guidelines and claimed the development was 'overbearing, disproportionate, monolithic, visually dominant and out of character' with adjoining properties. The group also voiced concern that the height of the apartment blocks would have a detrimental visual impact on views of the River Lee. In a submission, Cork City Council acknowledged the density of the scheme exceeded the upper target for central Ballincollig but said it was considered acceptable given its location near the town centre. Council planners also claimed the proposed unit mix was satisfactory and they claimed the proposed development overall was in keeping with the zoning of the site subject to compliance with a number of planning conditions. Advertisement A separate decision by An Bord Pleanála in September 2020 to grant planning permission for the construction of an identical number of apartments on the same site remains the subject of an ongoing legal challenge. In September 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of An Bord Pleanála in a case which sought to clarify a conflict which arose from the rulings of two High Court judges over whether the board was required to decline to deal with certain planning applications that were not accompanied by specific documents. The case partially arose from a judicial review brought by the Ballincollig-based Waltham Abbey Residents Association which claimed the board's grant of planning permission for the project on Old Fort Road in September 2020 was invalid. The Supreme Court directed that the original application should be remitted back to the High Court. Ireland Plans for almost 500 new homes put on hold after 3... Read More An inspector with An Bord Pleanála said the current proposal would be judged on its own merits. The inspector noted that the only differences between the two sets of plans were the omission of a gym at ground floor level in lieu of a multi-purpose amenity room for residents and some internal layout changes to improve daylight levels. She observed that the proposed development provided a high quality form of residential accommodation with a wide range of amenities that could create a distinctive sense of place and which would encourage social integration from generous communal open spaces. However, the inspector also recommended that planning permission should be refused because the unit mix did not comply with the Cork City Development Plan 2022-2028.