Planning serves community not individual

Rulings in favour of people who disregard the vital, democratic, planning process send a worrying message, writes Mary Crowley.

THE recent High Court’s decision in Wicklow County Council Vs Fortune to make a demolition order against an unauthorised structure in Wicklow puts the interests of the individual ahead of the common good and does little to enhance public confidence in the planning system or planning profession.

Following a lengthy enforcement process, Mr Justice Hogan quashed an order to have the “chalet” style house demolished, ruling that the landowner had an inviolable constitutional right to her home under Section 40.5 of the Constitution. In this instance, the house had previously been refused planning permission by both Wicklow County Council and An Bord Pleanála on the grounds that the applicant could not demonstrate a need for a dwelling in this highly- sensitive location and that road access was substandard. Mr Justice Hogan decided to overrule these concerns on the grounds that the house could not be seen from the public road declaring that “one does not need to be a planning or traffic specialist to see that the site does not present a real and immediate traffic hazard”.