Dublin City Council has refused planning permission to a planned luxury boutique hotel for a site at Shelbourne Rd, Ballsbridge in Dublin 4 as the scheme would constitute overdevelopment of the site.
The scheme by Cal Craven’s Badlands Developments Ltd for the six storey 24 bedroom ‘Windjammer’ hotel resulted in widespread local opposition with the Eglinton Residents Association, the Pembroke Road Association, the Herbert Park Residents Association and the Lansdowne and District Residents Association (LARDA) all expressing concerns over the scheme.
In response to the planned hotel on the site of a former Ulster Bank branch for 166a Shelbourne Rd, the council has refused planning permission as the scheme “would have an unreasonable overbearing and visually dominant effect on adjoining sites”.
The Council has also refused planning permission as the development “is located on a heavily trafficked road” where several roads converge at the Pembroke Road, Shelbourne Road, Merrion Road, Ballsbridge Terrace and Elgin Road junctions.
The Council state that the proposed hotel would generate excessive drop-offs, servicing activity and overspill parking on the adjacent streets.
The Council concluded that the proposal would by the precedent it would set would seriously injure the amenities of property in the vicinity.
On behalf of theLansdowne and District Residents Association (LARDA), committee member, Frank Fitzgibbon told the council that that “the introduction of such a tall building will, as shown by the montages supplied, distract from the overall experience of the village and focus attention on a modern stark building sitting right at its core”.
Mr Fitzgibbon stated that the site is “too small to accommodate a 24 bedroom hotel”.
He said: “Too many developments attempt unsuccessfully to shoe horn the desires of the applicant into unsuitable sites. The building’s dominant position and design will dwarf the substantial bridge at Ballsbridge and remove its historic impact on the look of the village.”
On behalf of the Herbert Park Area Residents Association, chair, Colleen Joyce said that “the development’s proposed height would disproportionately tower over the surrounding streetscape creating an incongruous intervention and overdevelopment of the site”.
On behalf of the Eglinton Residents Association, Robin Mandal stated that the proposed development’s visual impact “would be profound and overbearing”.
On behalf of the applicants, planning consultant, Kevin Hughes told the council that the proposal for 166a Shelbourne Rd “would support the continued development of Ballsbridge and provide for a luxury hotel with river views and high-quality architectural design finishes”.
Mr Hughes of Hughes Planning & Development Consultants stated that the gateway location of the site is appropriate “and has the potential to absorb additional buildings of greater height”.
Mr Hughes stated that the site provides a unique setting for the provision of additional hospitality-based uses given the proximity of the site to key tourist venues at the Aviva Stadium and the Royal Dublin Society (RDS).
Reporting by Gordon Deegan
