Six-storey tower on Limerick city’s northside given go-ahead

AN Bord Pleanala has given the green light to a major new housing development on the city’s northside – overturning the verdict of its own inspector.
Osprey Construction Ltd has secured permission for a 92-unit development at Knockhill on the Ennis Road, near the Coonagh Roundabout, with a six-story apartment complex at its heart.
According to the proposals, some 92 residential units will be built on green space located on a 2.487 hectare side between the Ennis Road and the Condell Road
There will be two detached houses, 22 semi-detached homes, 12 terraced living spaces, 12 duplex unit, and one six-storey apartment complex.​
This will comprise of 44 apartments with parking in the basement. Access to the site will be provided from the Ennis Road.
The ambitious plans drew many objections, and local Fine Gael councillor Olivia O’Sullivan says the national appeals body’s decision “beggars belief.”
The concerns centre mainly around the size of the main apartment block, and traffic issues in an already built-up area.
Despite this, local council planners gave conditional planning permission for the development, which paved the way for residents to appeal it to An Bord Pleanala.
In a detailed 36-page report, inspector Hugh D Morrison outlined a number of reasons why he felt the development should be turned down.
He said the development would lead to an “inordinate number of dwellings on the site”, and that the plans would “fail to consistently reflect the advice of national planning guidelines and so a different design approach to the site’s development is needed.”
Mr Morrison said the apartment block would be “inappropriate” and lead to the increased use of “unsustainable” travel modes.
However, the board disagreed, and granted permission, subject to 25 conditions.
Cllr O’Sullivan said the apartment block is “out of character” for the northside.
She added: “I'm trying to understand the logic of this. There's no precedent around here something like this, so it's hard to see why they'd put one in. Why would they overrule the inspector if it is their expert opinion? What logic can they have applied to overrule the inspector who has judged it to be out of character for the area? It's very difficult to understand.”
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