5 days ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Councillors vote to cut more than 160 planned homes in south county Dublin
During a special meeting of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council last week, councillors discussed the Old Connaught Local Area Plan (LAP) on the Dublin and Wicklow border, near Bray.
This includes a new residential community of new homes, parks, neighbourhood centres and the potential extension of the Luas to the area.
However, during the six-hour meeting, two motions raised by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael councillors were agreed on which cut the overall number of homes planned from 2,515 units to 2,350.
Fianna Fáil Councillor Justin Moylan raised the motion to reduce residential density from 60 dwellings per hectare (dph) to 'ensure economic viability'.
He said the higher density of homes would mean people not having self-contained or 'own door' houses.
'We've a finance model that doesn't satisfy market demands. It results in built-to-rent developments that nobody can buy,' he said.
'We're in a situation where builders don't build because financiers don't finance, and homeowners don't get anywhere to live in.
'This motion addresses that dilemma. Builders are fearful of taking on compact developments due to increased economic risk,' he added.
Fine Gael councillor Barry Saul agreed that the current LAP would be non-viable for developers.
'This is a more realistic, nuanced plan. These motions are about stimulating own door house building in our community,' he said.
'It will help the old Connaught area and we can prioritise delivery if we reduce the density.'
Green Party Councillor Tom Kivlehan, who did not support the motions, said Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors were ignoring their own party guidelines around housing policy.
'It's giving two fingers to your own parties, ignoring your own government's guidelines as to what should be put beside high volume public transport,' he said.
'You're absolutely ignoring your own policies and reducing the number of houses we're going to build. We're not a county that's huge on the amount of land available, we have to use it efficiently.'
Independent councillor Hugh Lewis, who also voted against the motions, added: 'Why are we taking a developer-led approach because the plan is not 'economically viable' for them?
'That's not how we plan anything. Why are we taking breadcrumbs being thrown by developers.
'If we need own-door houses, the state should intervene and build those houses. There's no rationale to support this motion to support developers over people.'
Green Party councillor Lauren Tuite described the motions as 'political doublespeak at its worst – talking crisis while voting for less housing'.
'Housing is the single greatest challenge facing our country – yet councillors from government parties supposedly committed to increasing housing supply, voted to cut the number of homes in this LAP.
'Their reasoning – to increase the viability for developers to build – doesn't hold water. With fewer properties to bring to market, developers will have slim margins to work with, and buyers will be lumped with higher prices.
'The decision to decouple the delivery of the plan's housing from necessary neighbourhood infrastructure is also difficult to understand,' she added.
