Donaghcumper – Further Information Submitted On Zone B

Devondale Developments have submitted additional information to Kildare County Council in relation to planning application 08/439.   This relates to an application for 108 detached houses.

According to Cllr Catherine Murphy,  because Council  planners have not deemed the information supplied as “significant”  there will not be a further opportunity for public comment.   A decision on the file is now due on or before the 27th May 2009.

The planning application attracted dozens of objections,  not least because of the sensitive location of the site.   One of the submissions received was  from the Department of the Environment & Local Government.   They had  concerns about a range of things including the visual impact on Castletown House.   The Department had sought the omission of two rows of dwellings at the northern end of the site.   The Developer argues that removing two rows of dwellings would have “significant consequences for the potential of the site”.   The applicant also criticises the Department for not adopting “a more balanced  approach” to the development,  they have also advised the Council to ignore the Dept’s  submission on a range of grounds,  including  its late arrival.

In the new information supplied the applicant goes into some considerable detail on the issue of protected structures.  Donaghcumper House and Demesne was recently added to the protected structure list.  Such protection covers everything within the curtilidge of the site,  however,  the applicant argues that the  “term  curtilage has not been defined within the meaning of the Planning and development Act, 2000.    They state “it is respectfully submitted that the proposed development of Zone B will not endanger the Donaghcumper House or Demesne”.    Their  interpretation  would reduce the impact of such protection according to Cllr Murphy who went on to state,  that   one look at  the maps included  with the additional information, would be enough to convince any objective  onlooker  that construction of a modern housing estate beside Donaghcumper House would fundamentally alter the character of  this national gem.”

While  the applicant has considered, as they  were requested to do,  the  issues raised in the objections and submissions,  much of the content of the additional information argues the points rather than makes fundamental changes.

It should not come as a surprise, that there were a large number of objections to this and its sister planning application (which was deemed withdrawn some weeks ago).     Because of the International importance of Castletown House;  the National importance of Donaghcumper House and Demesne; the fact that the site is firmly located within the Liffey Valley;  not to mention access to and from the site.  The real outrage and the difficulties we find ourselves in go back to the decision made in 2002 when the then area Committee proposed the rezoning of the land,  something that I both argued and voted against at the time Cllr Murphy concludes.

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Posted by catherinemurphy on April 24, 2009. Filed under Celbridge,Planning & Development. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.