Planning row puts luxury flats in doubt

THE future of hundreds of luxury apartments in Dublin’s Docklands is in doubt after it emerged they have been sold without permission to build them.

A residents’ group close to the Spencer Dock area of Dublin is now preparing to launch legal action to prevent the development going ahead unless there are substantial changes to the plans.

Five hundred apartments ranging in cost from €300,000 to more than €500,000 have already been sold by Treasury Holdings. Buyers have paid deposits of 20,000 and the apartments are scheduled to be built by 2005. The 51-acre site will eventually form part of the biggest purpose-built neighbourhood in the country.

However, Gerry Fay of the North Wall Residents’ Association said the development flouts special laws which demand that building plans contain integrated social and affordable housing.

Mr Fay says the current blueprint means social housing will be lumped together in an “urban ghetto” on the fringes of the Spencer Dock site.

“They’re planning to build a fortress of apartments and corral the social and affordable housing into a corner of the area. The signal from the planning authorities is that they’re going to support the plans,” Mr Fay said.

The allegations have been rejected by Treasury Holdings which says it is providing almost 200 top-class social and affordable apartments in six locations around the site.

“We are completely and utterly complying with the social and affordable provision in the plans. Of that there is no doubt,” said Robert Tincknell, development director with Treasury Holdings.

“It’s very disappointing that people are preparing to object to a development of such scale and quality when we’re about to provide more social and affordable housing than the entire city did last year,” Mr Tincknell said.

He said the social housing would be grouped together in a number of locations and would be indistinguishable in appearance from the luxury apartments.

Mr Tincknell said the social housing units would be smaller than the private apartments but he insisted that this situation was favoured by housing associations who will ultimately maintain the buildings.

The Dublin Docklands Development Authority is expected to make a decision shortly on whether to give permission for the apartments to be built.

A spokesperson said there was no question of favouring either side and they were aware of the concerns of all groups involved.