This morning I have been granted leave to take a Judicial Review of An Bord Pleanála’s handling of a proposal to demolish and replace the Deer Park Hotel on Howth Demesne.
Why I’m lodging this JR
The new owners want to knock down Deer Park Hotel and build a new hotel but they did not even consider renovating/reusing the existing building – and I believe they should have.
That’s why I have applied for a Judicial Review of An Bord Pleanála’s handling of the proposal: ABP should have sought a demolition justification report to address the sustainability of knocking down the existing hotel rather than retrofitting and restoring it.
Too much of Dublin’s building stock is destroyed and dumped in favour of new builds. Many people see this for what it is – an enormous waste of resources. Demolition can and should be justified, and ABP should have made sure it was. That’s why I’m lodging this Judicial Review.
The grounds for the application are threefold:
- that the planning application was not accompanied by a demolition justification report addressing the sustainability of demolishing rather than retrofitting the existing hotel,
- that the report from the landowner in response to my appeal to the Board was not circulated to me although that was recommended within the Board, and
- that the handling of screening for environmental impact assessment did not meet EU law requirements.
My concerns are about the sustainability of demolition. I agree with the principle of a hotel at this location, and I don’t consider that the existing hotel is of architectural heritage value. But buildings of poor quality can be turned into high quality buildings with low environmental impact; see the prize-winning examples by Lacaton and Vassal linked from the details below.
Background and details:
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